Analytical applications of ternary complexes

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Dying in the New Country

Before the great Cold War diaspora wrenched millions of Latin Americans from their homelands and thrust them to the fortunes and misfortunes of foreign lands, most of us from the region had assumed that the land of our birth would naturally also be the land of our death. Cemetery plots confirmed the passing of the generations, but they also confirmed our expectations that one day we too would join our ancestors in that same sacred family space. Visits to these plots formed part of family life: to mark birthdays, Mother s and Father s Days, and other special anniversaries. Sadness mingled with a deep sense of belonging on those occasions, as young children, parents and grandparents pilgrimaged as one in this time-honoured ritual of remembrance and solidarity with our dead. Family plots were an extension of our family homes, they completed the circle of life and death

In the shadow of the Buddhas: a new politics of heritage reconstruction in Afghanistan

This thesis investigates the politics of cultural heritage preservation in Afghanistan between 2008 and 2015. Based on several periods of fieldwork in Afghanistan between 2012 and 2015 and combined with observations from working on a number of internationally sponsored heritage projects in Kabul, I study the new and complex intersections between cultural heritage and politics. I argue that a particular configuration of heritage and politics has emerged after the destructions of the Buddhas at Bamyan and show how the characteristics of this ‘post-Bamyan’ heritage paradigm are revealed through a number of case studies of internationally sponsored heritage work. These case studies reveal how politics and heritage are currently configured across a diverse range of governments, state and non-state actors, NGOs, individuals and forms of expertise and why such intersections matter. The case studies include the ongoing conservation of the niches of the Bamyan Buddhas; the work of the Kabul based Scottish NGO Turquoise Mountain; a project to restore and conserve the Khwaja Parsa mosque and shrine complex by Aga Khan Trust for Culture in Balkh; and a number of projects focused on Afghanistan’s pre-Islamic past. This research has responded to a call from across the discipline of Heritage Studies to look more closely at the relationships between heritage, power and politics as heritage work is inextricably part of 21st century diplomacy, entangled with new forms of soft and hard power and mobilised to soften the ‘new imperialisms’ of neoliberal interventions as they alter political and economic climates in countries such as Afghanistan

A Pilot Evaluation Study Using LectureTools to Enhance Interactivity in Classroom-Based Teaching in a Project Management Course

With students’ ownership of laptops and mobile devices increasing, there exists an opportunity to harness their use to support interactivity within the traditional classroom. Two educators, motivated to enhance interactivity in a two-day project management course at a UK university, trialled LectureTools, a cloud-based audience-response system. To assess potential benefits to learning and teaching, as well as identifying accompanying challenges, an evaluation study was carried out comprising a range of data sources. These included observation of a LectureTools-based lecture and a student questionnaire followed by a focus group discussion with a subset of students about their experiences throughout the two days. Interviews with both teachers were also conducted, adding to the evaluation research data and giving them an opportunity to reflect on their teaching practice. All participants recognised the benefits of LectureTools in promoting student engagement, learning and discussion while students acknowledged the distractive potential of having laptops in the lecture theatre. Efforts are required by educators to ensure that the interactive potential of laptops in classrooms to enhance learning and teaching is supported while controlling the potential for distraction. Future research is needed to ascertain the impact of using LectureTools on approaches to learning and teaching

Arousal Reappraisal and Interoceptive Awareness: How Awareness of Bodily Changes Facilitates Heightened Performance and Ability to Reappraise

The physiological arousal induced by a stressful situation has historically been viewed as bad; however, recent research has challenged this perspective, arguing that stress-related arousal can be beneficial. Arousal reappraisal is a coping technique that encourages individuals to reinterpret their physiological stress response as a means to help improve performance. Conversely, suppression, a common, yet ineffective coping technique, involves the active effort to stop oneself from expressing an emotional behavior. The current research examined the relationship between coping techniques and interoceptive awareness (IA), the degree to which individuals are aware of their own physiological changes. Comparing arousal reappraisal to both suppression and a control condition, the current research measured physiological changes, as well as performance on tasks intended to induce stress, including a timed math subtraction task and a karaoke singing task, to determine whether individuals with high IA would benefit more from arousal reappraisal techniques. Hypothesis One predicted an interaction between the independent variables, with high IA individuals in the control and suppression conditions performing worse than their low IA counterparts and high IA individuals benefiting more from arousal reappraisal techniques than those with low IA. Hypothesis Two predicted a main effect of coping condition for physiological changes, specifically predicting that individuals in the suppression condition would experience increased levels of physiology when compared to individuals in the other conditions. The results of the study did not fully support either hypothesis. The results suggest that arousal reappraisal did not have a significant effect on performance during a stressful task and found IA to have no significant impact on participants\u27 ability to benefit from reappraisal. However, the results did show a non-significant trend towards an interaction between IA and coping condition for performance on the mathematical stress task. This trend supports our prediction that suppression would hinder performance ability and continues to support the importance of the role of IA. Finally, there was a significant difference between baseline physiology and physiology during the two stress tasks, suggesting the tasks were an effective manipulation. However, physiology did not vary between the coping conditions. The results suggest the need for continued research on this topic

The problem of coronary heart disease with special reference to the influence of physical activity

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An Analysis of the Effectiveness and Impact of the Provision of Mindfulness, Emotional Intelligence and Work Readiness Modules to Irish Third Level Students

Recently, there has been an emphasis on social-emotional learning (SEL) in educational settings and the role this may play in an individuals’ later life outcomes as well as their ability to manage stress and express and manage emotion in adaptive ways (Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning (CASEL), 2020). Recent research also supports a positive correlation between emotional intelligence (EI) and the development of interpersonal skills, academic attainment, memory and problem-solving skills (Boyatzis & Saatcioglu, 2008). Further research emphasises the role of emotional competencies in sustaining employment and placement in higher education (Carthy et al., 2013; Murphy, 2015). As a result of the coronavirus pandemic, many college courses have pivoted to complete online delivery, meaning that educators and students alike are faced with new challenges associated with the online delivery of modules and student supports. Given the positive correlation between SEL and positive life outcomes in conjunction with the scale of the recent transition to distance learning, this small-scale study sought to explore the impact and efficacy of three five-week modules (mindfulness, EI, and workplace readiness), which were predominantly delivered online to a sample of students from Technological University (TU) Dublin. Specifically, the mindfulness module was made available to all first-year students, the EI module was available to all second-year students and the workplace readiness (WPR) module was available to all final-year students. Results demonstrated that participation in the mindfulness module led to decreased levels of perceived stress for students while increasing levels of resilience. Furthermore, students who attended the module reported that the course provided emotional support and that it aided them in finding a healthy work-life balance. Regarding the EI module, results revealed that participants\u27 average overall level of EI increased after completion of the module. Students reported that they believed the module provided emotional support and enabled them to manage academic stress more effectively. Finally, regarding the WPR module, results revealed that there was an increase in participants’ overall level of EI as well as improved scores on the CareerEDGE Employability Development Profile after completion of the module. Furthermore, students reported that involvement in the module not only empowered them to effectively assess their strengths and weaknesses but enabled them to develop interpersonal skills to allow them to communicate with employers more confidently as they transition into the workplace. Taken collectively, results support existing research and suggest that mindfulness, EI and WPR modules can effectively enable students to benefit personally, academically and professionally. However, further confirmatory research is required

Coronary heart disease and physical activity - a fresh look

Incidences of fatal coronary heart disease in White South African males increased significantly between 1951 and 1970. In those under 60 years of age, the incidence exceeds that in USA. Prevention lies in the early recognition of raised blood lipids and hypertension, and in stopping smoking. The role of physical inactivity is less certain. The physiological knowledge needed for determining the correct speed of walking and running is proposed.S. Afr. Med. J., 48, 571 (1974)

Parental leave: Bad for breastfeeding?

Follow up to a presentation given at the International Children and Childhoods Conference held at University Campus Suffolk, 14th-15th July, 2015.The latest UK parental leave reform introduced by the Children and Families Act 2014 could have an unintended impact on breastfeeding outcomes. The revised provision of up to 50 weeks shared leave was introduced in April 2015, with a view to encouraging parents to share infant care responsibilities more equally. This paper explores issues with definitions, policy shifts leading to the incremental change in entitlement and the potential for cascading policy failure