Learning From Difference: Comparing Child Welfare Systems

Child welfare and child protection are integral aspects of the welfare regimes of all post-industrial societies. However, although the needs of children and the dangers of child abuse are so widely acknowledged, the ways in which these needs and risks are met varies considerably, even between countries with similar structures. By studying the ways in which other countries deal with similar problems, we can learn about new ways of responding and may find ideas that we can adapt for use in our own context. But we can do much more than this. By looking at differences, and using the power of making comparisons, we can begin to understand more about our own system and why it has developed as it has. We can begin to identify the ‘taken-for-granted’. This may lead us to question some of the assumptions on which our system rests and to become more aware of the aspects of our system that we value most highly. As we become more aware of the reasons why our system has developed as it has, positive changes may become more attainable

Entire choosability of near-outerplane graphs

It is proved that if G is a plane embedding of a K4-minor-free graph with maximum degree Δ, then G is entirely 7-choosable if Δ≤4 and G is entirely (Δ+ 2)-choosable if Δ≥ 5; that is, if every vertex, edge and face of G is given a list of max{7,Δ+2} colours, then every element can be given a colour from its list such that no two adjacent or incident elements are given the same colour. It is proved also that this result holds if G is a plane embedding of a K2,3-minor-free graph or a (K2 + (K1 U K2))-minor-free graph. As a special case this proves that the Entire Colouring Conjecture, that a plane graph is entirely (Δ + 4)-colourable, holds if G is a plane embedding of a K4-minor-free graph, a K2,3-minor-free graph or a (K2 + (K1 U K2))-minor-free graph

An Analysis of MiLB Salaries and Cost of Living: How does the ability to live on MiLB salaries differ based on player contract and city?

The purpose of this research was to determine how Minor League Baseball (MiLB) player ability to live on different MiLB salaries change from city to city. This research set out to discover if the salaries made by MiLB player’s during the 2016 season was sufficient enough to cover the cost of living in each MiLB city. An increasing level of disparity between MLB and MiLB salaries has developed, but no research specifically compared MiLB city cost of living to MiLB salaries. The results of this study are valuable for Minor League Baseball players because it allows for individual cost of living analysis on all 60 MiLB cities at the Double-A and Triple-A level. This would allow players to gain knowledge on the difficulty to live in specific MiLB cities before being placed there, ultimately increasing self-awareness of the financial hardships they may endure, while also emphasizing the importance of alternative employment and budgeting practices. Quantitative secondary data was utilized. The entire population (n=60) was studied. Cost of living data were collected from Sperling’s Best Places. The results indicated that the assumption that MiLB players live on poverty (Babb & Castillo, 2016) while in some cases true, in others is false. It was found that MiLB players do, indeed, have a difficult time covering living costs over a 12-month period, and in some cases, cannot cover living costs for their city of employment when living there during the season only (six months). It was also found that while all of the highest paid MiLB players can cover living expenses, the overwhelming majority of the lowest paid players end up living at less than minimum wage level

O tempo do arquivo: a decadência do museu e a poética da história

Neste artigo, estou interessado na instituição moderna do museu ocidental. Muitos museus tiveram seu começo no século XIX e persistem até hoje influenciando, além dos centros Europeus e Norte Americanos, o desenvolvimento subseqüente de outros museus pelo mundo. Não existe uma problemática única que defina o museu, assim como temos que reconhecer que eles são variados em tipo, em escala e no alcance de suas ambições

The ruin revisited

A chapter which explores the role of ruins within contemporary socety and the reception associated with them. In particular, it highlights the important ways in which social time is configured around the recovery of ruins from the past, focusing on the event-like character of time as Kairos that ruins evoke and the ways in which this intersects with our chronological sense of time. The chapter goes on to explore the implications for museums and the presentation of heritage

Creating the on-line documentary: a satellite solution

[Abstract]: The online documentary, A Satellite Solution, is a case study investigation into how digital communications (primarily satellite TV) have impacted the quality of life of a rural community comprising 50 households in southeast Queensland (Australia) between 1999 and 2006. The production depicts a community-mediated process by which these residents adopted and then responded to receiving free-to-air TV services for the first time. The author, instigated and facilitated the project in the community and as well, recorded and produced all the material contained in the in the documentary. The paper will highlight the production components of the research set against the context of this participatory activity.This online documentary is a web site containing research materials (policy documents, significant correspondence and reports) video interviews and location sequences, maps and technical information such as, how to install a satellite system, where to find free-to-air satellite services and what satellite broadband incentives are available etc. Importantly it also represents innovation in film and television and particularly, the researcher's selected art form, the documentary. This paper, takes a practice focus and will document the production of the web site and how this new form impacts on the production style of traditional linear production and as well, what filmmakers working in this emerging non-linear form may need to plan for. This project formed the practical component for a recently completed research degree, Doctor of Visual Arts (Griffith), by the author

Myofascial Release

Fascia represents an intricate system of connective tissue that permeates throughout the human body. Its matrix of continuous fibers support, protect, divide and suspend both superficial and deep anatomical structures. While once thought to be a passive mesh network, new evidence suggests fascia is much more complicated. Now recognized as an active physiological component of the human body, myofascial health and function has been given much attention clinically. Of the techniques aimed to treat and restore fascial structure and function, myofascial release has been found to promote stability, increase range of motion and most importantly alleviate musculoskeletal pain. This form of soft tissue therapy deserves more academic and clinical attention for its positive effects on the fascial health

What price stability? Market design in the Australian banking sector

Few subjects in the public debate are more emotive than banking. Bankers’ actions, pay and profits have been ferociously dissected in the wake of the Global Financial Crisis (GFC). In Australia, we were fortunate that our banking system and broader economy survived the crisis in good health. But banks’ behaviour here continues to attract scrutiny.   This report examines our banking debate through the prism of market design. It analyses the major faultlines, identifies enduring market failures and proposes a policy response. There are three main points of tension: 1) whether the banks should follow the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) in setting interest rates; 2) whether rising funding costs have necessitated the banks\u27 rate increases; and 3) whether banks are too profitable relative to the risk they face. On the first two points, the report finds in favour of the banks – they are rightly the arbiters of their own rate settings, and rising funding costs have indeed led banks to raise rates. On the third point, we find that the Big Four banks are more profitable than the risk attached to their equity would justify, thanks to implicit insurance provided by the state and a market structure which makes their operations more capital intensive than necessary

Per Capita tax survey 2014: public attitudes towards taxation and government expenditure

Rather than saying they pay too much tax, this report finds Australians currently claim they are paying about the right amount of tax, and their support for higher public spending has risen