Robotics for Distance learning: A Case Study from a UK Masters Programme

The MSc Intelligent Systems (IS) and the MSc Intelligent Systems and Robotics (ISR) programmes at De Montfort University are Masters level courses that are delivered both on-site and by distance learning. The courses have been running successfully on-site for eight years and are now in the fifth year with a distance learning mode. Delivering material at a distance, especially where there is technical and practical content, presents a challenge and in this paper we focus on some of the techniques adopted to overcome the particular challenges encountered in the delivery of Robotics modules

The political economy of multilateral aid funds

In 2014 over $60 billion was mobilized to help developing nations mitigate climate change, an amount equivalent to the GDP of Kenya. Interestingly, breaking from the traditional model of bilateral aid, donor countries distributed nearly fifty percent of their aid through multilateral aid funds (OECD, 2015). In this paper, we show that by delegating aid spending to an international fund, donor countries mitigate a "hold-up" problem that occurs when donor countries are tempted to allocate aid based on, say, a regional preference. That is, under bilateral aid, donor-country bias decreases the incentive of recipient countries to invest in measures such as good governance that increase the effectiveness of aid. By delegating allocation decisions to a fund, however, donor countries commit to allocating aid via centralized bargaining, which provides recipient countries with an increased incentive to invest. Additionally, we show that allocating funding by majority rule further increases recipient-country investment, since higher investment increases the probability that a recipient's project will be selected by the endogenous majority coalition, and detail conditions under which majority is the optimal voting rule

Law in everyday life and death: a socio-legal study of chronic disorders of consciousness

This paper addresses, from a socio-legal perspective, the question of the significance of law for the treatment, care and the end-of-life decision making for patients with chronic disorders of consciousness. We use the phrase ‘chronic disorders of consciousness’ as an umbrella term to refer to severely brain-injured patients in prolonged comas, vegetative or minimally conscious states. Based on an analysis of interviews with family members of patients with chronic disorders of consciousness, we explore the images of law that were drawn upon and invoked by these family members when negotiating the situation of their relatives, including, in some cases, the ending of their lives. By examining ‘legal consciousness’ in this way (an admittedly confusing term in the context of this study,) we offer a distinctly sociological contribution to the question of how law matters in this particular domain of social life

Factors Associated with Food Insecurity and Food Assistance Program Participation among University Students

Background and Significance: Food insecurity is an emerging issue among college students. It impacts the lives of many university students due to financial reasons. There is limited information about factors that affect food insecurity in that population. This cross-sectional study aimed to examine factors associated with food insecurity and food assistance program participation among college students. Methods: Food security status was determined using the short form of the USDA’s Food Security Survey Module. Results: Out of 116 students, 50 students (43.1%) were food insecure. Food insecurity was inversely associated with self-reported cumulative grade point averages. Only 24% of food insecure students participated in food assistance programs. Students who were involved in campus activities were significantly more likely to participate in food assistance programs. University-level policies and programs that help students combat food insecurity need to be considered. Conclusion: The inverse association between food insecurity and academic success indicates the importance of addressing food insecurity issues to foster their academic and professional success among university students. More research on strategies for promoting food assistance programs to college students is warranted. © 2018 Californian Journal of Health Promotion. All rights reserved

A model for predicting dissolved organic carbon distribution in a reservoir water using fluorescence spectroscopy

A number of water treatment works (WTW) in the north of England (UK) have experienced problems in reducing the dissolved organic carbon (DOC) present in the water to a sufficiently low level. The problems are experienced in autumn/ winter when the colour increases and the coagulant dose at the WTW needs to be increased in order to achieve sufficient colour removal. However, the DOC content of the water varies little throughout the year. To investigate this further, the water was fractionated using resin adsorption techniques into its hydrophobic (fulvic and humic acid fractions) and hydrophilic (acid and non-acid fractions) components. The fractionation process yields useful information on the changing concentration of each fraction but is time consuming and labour intensive. Here, a method of rapidly determining fraction concentration was developed using fluorescence spectroscopy. The model created used synchronous spectra of fractionated material compared against bulk water spectra and predicted the fraction concentrations to within 10% for a specific water. The model was unable to predict fraction concentrations for waters from a different watershed

Mit Vielfalt punkten - Bauern messen Biodiversität

Da die Artenvielfalt auf einem Landwirtschaftsbetrieb nur mit viel Aufwand direkt messbar ist, wurde im Rahmen eines Projekts ein Bewertungssystem entwickelt, das verschiedene Lebensraumaspekte und Bewirtschaftungsverfahren spezifisch mit Punkten gewichtet. Damit kann die Leistung eines Betriebs zur Förderung und Erhaltung der Artenvielfalt indirekt gemessen werden

Mit Vielfalt punkten: Bauern beleben die Natur

Das Projekt „Mit Vielfalt punkten - Bauern beleben die Natur“ wurde 2008 erfolgreich gestartet. Das Projekt verfolgt zwei Hauptziele: Zum einen wird ein Punktesystem validiert, mit dem die Leistungen von Landwirtschaftbetrieben für die Biodiversität effizient und zuverlässig bewertet werden kann. Zum anderen möchte das Projekt aufzeigen, dass mit einer sehr spezifischen gesamtbetrieblichen Beratung diese Naturschutzleistungen signifikant erhöht werden können. Den Schwerpunkt der Arbeiten im Jahr 2008 bildeten die detaillierte Erarbeitung der anzuwendenden Methoden sowie die Erhebung der ersten Betriebe. Auf zwölf Betrieben des Mittellandes (20-47 ha gross, mit 4.4-27.1 Punkten im Punktesystem) wurden sämtliche Schritte des Projektes durchgeführt, d.h. nach ersten Gesprächen mit den Landwirten wurden die Lebensräume des Betriebes kartiert, die Biodiversität (Pflanzen-, Vogel-, Tagfalter- und Heuschreckenvielfalt) und soziökonomische Daten erfasst, das Punktesystem ausgefüllt, sowie Befragungen zur Motivation der Landwirte durchgeführt. Die Hälfte der Landwirte wurde unter Einbezug sowohl ökologischer wie auch betriebswirtschaftlicher Aspekte umfassend beraten, wie sie ihren Betrieb ökologisch aufbessern könnten. Die verwendeten Methoden haben sich grösstenteils bewährt und mussten nur geringfügig angepasst werden. Die Abstimmung zwischen den Projektpartnern funktioniert ebenfalls reibungslos. Bei den Biodiversitätsaufnahmen wurden total 471 Pflanzen-, 62 Vogel-, 48 Tagfalter- und 26 Heuschreckenarten festgestellt. In allen vier Gruppen stieg die Artenvielfalt mit zunehmender Punktezahl der Betriebe tendenziell an