Pile- Exhibition curated by Craig Fisher

This enquiry extends previous investigations exploring the relation between pattern, decoration and formalist abstraction, addressing painting’s capacity to establish a ‘visual pulse’, enabling a re-interpretation of both a previous painting and a body of new paintings/drawings. The work was selected for a comprehensive sculpture exhibition that questions the conventions of group exhibitions. Ways in which painting’s autonomy is examined through display and proximity to the work of others are explored. Mother in Law’s Tongue, a three-panelled painting on domestic door blanks, connected floor and wall – both siting and object/image address the boundary between painting and sculpture. The hierarchy of fine art over decorative arts is challenged: the painting used as a device on which to hang the work of another artist, risking that the work might be seen as a decorative prop. Previous research using repetition and difference as a means to invoke a visual pulse in painting was re-visited in a new body of paintings on paper, continuing investigations of relations between internal mark-making, in relation to frame, size and scale, and parameters of substrate. The project restricts colour to its constitute subtractive primaries (magenta, yellow, and cyan), which then enables the exploration of a set of permutations and combinations. The resulting paintings are constructed through a repetitive process, engaging the viewer in the rhythm and craft of production, producing a hypnotic quality, making the work seem more ‘alive’ than the methodical nature of production might suggest. The slippage between systematic abstraction and pattern suggests an in-between space, uncertain and open to interpretation. Earlier stages of this research include: a group exhibition Trick of Light, Primo Alonso Gallery, London, 2010, curated by Juan Bolivar; and two chapbooks in the series Transmission Hospitality (London: Artwords, 2010, 2011) – from the second, a visual and textual dialogue with the artist Jane Harris, the saturated works above developed

Tools for the high penetration of PV Systems in the EU electrical networks: results of PVCROPS Project

The Solar Energy Industrial Initiative established the objective of integrating PV into the grid to provide up to 12% of the EU electricity demand. The FP7 project PVCROPS has developed solutions to allow the high penetration of PV systems in EU electrical networks and to reduce its Levelized Cost (LCoE) increasing PV system performance. The solutions consist of documents like technical specifications and toolboxes for design, prediction, integration of batteries and automatic detection of performance failures. Six of them are on-line free tools and thirteen are marketable products. These tools allow reducing the LCoE up to 30%, increasing the Performance Ratio up to 9% and PV penetration of 30%. The tools developed by PVCROPS are detailed in www.pvcrops.e

A is for Abstract

The presentation we are delivering today is in the form of an A,B,C,D which we will read and that is accompanied by 26 slides that are representative of the MMS and What’s App mediated visual conversation that has taken place… Painting as dialogue. Painting as a message. Painting as a text message that becomes a bridge, a form of communication and correspondence. Abstract painting- is a visual mode of thinking, a means of making and doing - a means of visual research. It’s a language we have been exploring and experimenting with in our individual practices and one that we wanted to explore as dialogue due to geographical and commitment constraints the traditional idea of studio visits was replaced by and enabled through the digital networked communication, via the handset of our mobile phone. Using the shared language of abstract painting, Dale Holmes and Gary Simmonds have set out to relay images of paintings made in their studios as a form of dialogue, through the digital and analogue. The work was made visible through the small screen of a smart phone. This visibility is constrained and mediated through technology. The interaction was framed by the language and understanding of texting technology. The project set out to investigate how an exchange of images via smart phone, and the occasional encounter of each other’s practice in the studio could affect work made in response to this relay. This dialogue sets out as a tool of connection, and negotiation around each other’s practice and the act of making. Shared concerns emerging from this relay so far include: indexical mark making; gesture as a calligraphic mark/ signature, colour - mediated through technology

Die Panke - An off LoBe Project ‘Bad Str Chartreuse’ watercolour on wall, 2010

German and English visiting artists take this small river that runs through Berlin as the starting point for this group show. Gary Simmonds is an artist based in London, visiting Berlin for this show. His practice is concerned with abstract painting’s relation to domestic ornamentation and decoration. For Die Panke he has worked with the contingency of material and space. Choosing the untypical medium of watercolour for his mural painting, and in response to the raw domestic space of the Bad Str flat, Simmonds uses the ephemeral to evoke the ghost of the decorative at the same time as drawing influence from the daily journey along the Panke to and from the flat

Systematic review and meta-analysis of the risk of severe and life-threatening thromboembolism in cancer patients receiving anti-EGFR monoclonal antibodies (cetuximab or panitumumab)

Cancer-associated thromboembolism is a substantial problem in clinical practice. An increase in the level of fibrinopeptide A (a substance associated with hypercoagulable states) has been observed in humans exposed to fluorouracil. Anti-EGFR monoclonal antibodies cetuximab and panitumumab, which are now widely used in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer, could prolong the uncovering of endothelial structures resulting from flouorouracil or other co-administered agents, thus favouring several factors leading to thromboembolism. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised, controlled trials assessing whether cancer patients receiving anti-EGFR monoclonal antibodies cetuximab and panitumumab are at increased risk of thromboembolic events. We searched electronic databases (Medline, Embase, Web of Science, Central) and reference lists. Phase II/III randomised, controlled trials comparing standard anti-cancer regimens with or without anti-EGFR monoclonal antibodies and reporting serious venous thromboembolic events were included in the analysis. Seventeen studies (12,870 patients) were considered for quantitative analysis. The relative risk (RR) for venous thromboembolism (18 comparisons) was 1.46 (95% CI 1.26 to 1.69); the RR of pulmonary embolism, on the basis of eight studies providing nine comparisons, was 1.55 (1.20 to 2.00). Cancer patients receiving anti-EGFR monoclonal antibodies-containing regimens are approximately 1.5 times more likely to experience venous or pulmonary embolism, compared to those treated with the same regimens without anti-EGFR monoclonal antibodies. Clinicians should consider patient's baseline thromboembolic risk when selecting regimens that include cetuximab or panitumumab. Potential non-reporting of these important adverse events remains a concern. PROSPERO registration number is CRD42014009165

Engendering a Sense of Belonging to Support Student Well-Being during COVID-19: A Focus on Sustainable Development Goals 3 and 4

© 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed a plethora of inequalities in South Africa. These inequalities have had a direct impact on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). SDG 3 (good health and well-being) and SDG 4 (quality education) were the focus of this article. This article investigated how students enrolled at a South African residential university perceived the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their well-being, their success in completing their studies and their future career prospects. A quantitative survey research design was followed. Data were collected by means of a questionnaire from 537 students in a South African university. Statistical Package for Social Sciences software version 27 was used to analyze the data. The results indicated direct influences on student well-being from concerns that arose from COVID-19 about future job concerns, degree completion, social support and belonging. The relationship between concerns about degree completion was moderated by a sense of belonging (social identification) but not by social support. The study has significant implications for how higher education institution governors and academics might consider reconceptualizing notions of student support, beyond the narrow, technical and basic curriculum support for degree completion, towards the affective and social as it relates to creating conditions for students to identify with and experience a profound sense of belonging.Peer reviewedFinal Published versio

10 years on from the landmark stroke thrombectomy trials, where are we now? A qualitative study examining professional views on the implementation of endovascular treatment for ischaemic stroke in England

ObjectiveTo explore multiprofessional views about system-wide factors influencing (impeding or facilitating) the delivery of stroke mechanical thrombectomy (MT) services and/or improvements to this pathway in England.DesignA pragmatic exploratory qualitative study using online focus groups and semi-structured interviews with National Health Service (NHS) professionals and those working in a stroke strategic/policy lead role. We thematically analysed the data using the Framework Approach to understand participants' views on the challenges to improving current and future MT implementation.SettingNHS trusts and other key stroke strategic/policy organisations covering 10 geographical regions in England and a national perspective.ParticipantsA total of 29 professionals, working in an NHS clinical and managerial position and/or a stroke strategic national/regional clinical/policy lead role, participated in five focus groups and six individual semi-structured interviews between April and June 2024.ResultsWe identified five themes relating to MT implementation progress and challenges (1) workforce, (2) clinical care pathways, (3) service/system, (4) cross-cutting theme: communications and (5) cross-cutting theme: culture. Our analysis emphasised the increasing complexity and inter-related factors shaping the emergency stroke pathway for MT provision and a need to acknowledge key people-related, organisational and sociocultural factors during service planning.ConclusionsDespite the challenges and complexity, professionals were optimistic that further progress would be made with MT delivery in England. However, ongoing improvement strategies are required, which also acknowledge wider cultural factors and system-wide relationships and are not just focused on care pathways and resources

Healthcare professional views about a prehospital redirection pathway for stroke thrombectomy: a multiphase deductive qualitative study

Background: Mechanical thrombectomy for stroke is highly effective but time-critical. Delays are common because many patients require transfer between local hospitals and regional centres. A two-stage prehospital redirection pathway consisting of a simple ambulance screen followed by regional centre assessment to select patients for direct admission could optimise access. However, implementation might be challenged by the limited number of thrombectomy providers, a lack of prehospital diagnostic tests for selecting patients and whether finite resources can accommodate longer ambulance journeys plus greater central admissions. We undertook a three-phase, multiregional, qualitative study to obtain health professional views on the acceptability and feasibility of a new pathway. Methods: Online focus groups/semistructured interviews were undertaken designed to capture important contextual influences. We purposively sampled NHS staff in four regions of England. Anonymised interview transcripts underwent deductive thematic analysis guided by the NASSS (Non-adoption, Abandonment and Challenges to Scale-up, Spread and Sustainability, Implementation) Implementation Science framework. Results: Twenty-eight staff participated in 4 focus groups, 2 group interviews and 18 individual interviews across 4 Ambulance Trusts, 5 Hospital Trusts and 3 Integrated Stroke Delivery Networks (ISDNs). Five deductive themes were identified: (1) (suspected) stroke as a condition, (2) the pathway change, (3) the value participants placed on the proposed pathway, (4) the possible impact on NHS organisations/adopter systems and (5) the wider healthcare context. Participants perceived suspected stroke as a complex scenario. Most viewed the proposed new thrombectomy pathway as beneficial but potentially challenging to implement. Organisational concerns included staff shortages, increased workflow and bed capacity. Participants also reported wider socioeconomic issues impacting on their services contributing to concerns around the future implementation. Conclusions: Positive views from health professionals were expressed about the concept of a proposed pathway while raising key content and implementation challenges and useful ‘real-world’ issues for consideration

Sea level pressure response to the specification of eddy-resolving sea surface temperature in simulations of Australian east coast lows

Four east coast lows (ECLs) were simulated with the Weather Research and Forecast model to investigate the influence of the sea surface temperature (SST) distribution on the sea level pressure (SLP). Each ECL was simulated with two different SST datasets: the Bluelink SST field and NCEP skin temperature field. The former resolved eddies in the East Australian Current while the latter did not. The simulated SLP fields in the eddy-resolving SST runs were compared with those in the non-eddy-resolving SST runs. On time-scales of about 48 hours, higher SSTs were asso-ciated with lower SLPs. The spatial scale of the SLP response was similar to that of the ocean eddies, indicative of the rapidity and robustness of the response given the rapidly evolving conditions within the storms. On shorter time-scales, the SLP response to SST change can become substantially larger. The largest reductions in SLP in the eddy-resolving SST runs were associated with regions of deep atmospheric convection that warm the tropospheric column. These areas were shown to be related to the SST distribution with the greatest SLP reductions associated with convection over strong SST gradient regions. The landfall of a damaging convective mesoscale low pressure system on 8 June 2007 was also investigated. It was found that a region of strong SST gradients on the southern flank of a large warm ocean eddy was associated with lower pressures at the time of formation of this meso-low. In addition, the only case that simulated the low pressure at the correct time (albeit at not quite the correct location) was the eddy-resolved SST run. It was hy-pothesized that the development of this meso-low that impacted the coast around Newcastle, was enhanced because of the eddy-scale SST distribution at the time

Redirecting research efforts on the diversification-performance linkage: The search for synergy

We review the literature on the diversification-performance (D-P) relationship to a) propose that the time is ripe for a renewed attack on understanding the relationship between diversification and firm performance, and b) outline a new approach to attacking the question. Our paper makes four main contributions. First, through a review of the literature we establish the inherent complexities in the D-P relationship and the methodological challenges confronted by the literature in reaching its current conclusion of a non-linear relationship between diversification and performance. Second, we argue that to better guide managers the literature needs to develop along a complementary path – whereas past research has often focused on answering the big question of does diversification affect firm performance, this second path would focus more on identifying the precise micro-mechanisms through which diversification adds or subtracts value. Third, we outline a new approach to the investigation of this topic, based on (a) identifying the precise underlying mechanisms through which diversification affects performance; (b) identifying performance outcomes that are “proximate” to the mechanism that the researcher is studying, and (c) identifying an appropriate research design that can enable a causal claim. Finally, we outline a set of directions for future research