140,844 research outputs found

    The Science of Esports

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    The Science of Esports draws from contemporary research and coach expertise to examine esports athlete health and performance from a range of disciplinary perspectives, including physiology, psychology, sociology, and nutrition. The rapid expansion of the esports industry has elevated competitive video gaming into the realm of high performance, requiring players, coaches, and practitioners to implement interdisciplinary approaches to performance support.The book covers key topic areas such as: What esports is and similarities and differences to sport Game-specific training Physiological and psychological consideration for esports athletes Social aspects of player performance and the social environment of esports Esports coaching and structure of esports performance environments Technology and its use in esports Safeguarding, cheating, and gamblingThis book includes worked examples and case studies to allow immediate implementation into practice for esports athletes and coaches. It summarises the current state of research to inform researchers and identify gaps in knowledge. This book is critical reading for students of esports and related courses. It serves as the first scientific resource designed to provide athletes, coaches, and practitioners with interdisciplinary insights into esports health and performance

    The Global Insurance Market and Change: Emerging Technologies, Risks and Legal Challenges

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    This book focuses on the global landscape in which insurance is transacted, and where it is evolving, driven from within by transformative technologies and externally by the necessity to address risks like climate change and health crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. It discusses the dynamic challenges and opportunities that lie ahead for the industry in areas such as on-demand insurance, embedded insurance, parametric insurance, autonomous vehicles, the rise of fintech, the cyber risk landscape and through initiatives driven by distributed ledger technology or blockchain solutions. Moreover, it covers the major external challenges confronting the global insurance market, such as the growing insurance protection gap in relation to the affordability and insurability of natural catastrophes and climate change, and pandemics like COVID-19. This book examines innovations in insurance driven by the industry as well as externally imposed changes and dynamics impacting the industry. It describes these changes, the industry’s responses and the legal framework in which they occur. It canvasses additional regulatory and law reform initiatives that may be necessary to achieve an effective balance between the various competing interests. The book is the first to address these matters holistically with a particular focus upon insurance law, it will describe these changes and industry responses and the legal framework in which they occur. The Global Insurance Market will be directly relevant to legal professionals, insurers, insurtechs, fintechs, brokers, CEOs of insurance companies, risk managers, legal counsel, academics, researchers, the judiciary, and policy makers. It will also serve as a valuable resource for students of all levels.</p

    Do videogame rewards influence players’ subsequent prosocial engagement? A preregistered partial replication study on the role of reward and reasoning

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    Prosocial behaviours are actions that have a positive impact on others. Those who act prosocially in videogames are more likely to be prosocial after the game. In-game rewards may impact this prosocial transfer to real life but there are mixed findings. The aim of this research was to determine the impact that in-game rewards for helping have on post-game prosocial behaviour. We partially replicated and extended a prior study that showed an impact of in-game rewards on a post-game charitable donation. While playing a videogame, players voluntarily chose to help a non-player character or not and were rewarded or not based on their experimental condition. Pre- and post-gameplay questionnaires were used to measure trait empathy, prosocial self-concept, and reasoning for in-game helping. Participants were then offered a bonus compensation and given the opportunity to donate some amount of it to charity. Moral Reasoning was positively associated with donation behaviour, successfully replicating some prior findings. However, in-game rewards did not affect reasoning or donation behaviour. The outcomes of this research help both researchers and developers better understand how rewards affect players’ reasoning and how to better utilise games as a method to increase prosocial behaviour in people.</p

    Out of-plane failure analysis of masonry walls subjected to hydrostatic and hydrodynamic loads induced by flash floods

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    Damage surveys from past flash flood events show that the combined hydrodynamic impulsive loading and the subsequent hydrostatic loading due to rising water levels caused the failure of masonry walls/buildings. However, limited studies have been conducted to understand the responses of masonry walls to these loading states. To bridge this knowledge gap, an explicit 3D shell element based finite element modelling method that incorporates a homogenised anisotropic masonry material model was developed and applied to analyse the out-of-plane collapse behaviour of masonry walls under flash flooding conditions. The developed modelling method was validated with an available experimental study of masonry wall subjected to hydrostatic loading conditions. It was then extended to comprehend the behaviour of masonry walls under hydrodynamic impulsive water pressures. Results reveal that the effect of hydrodynamic impulsive loading generated by the first hit of the flash flood water is significant in reducing the stiffness of the masonry. This reduction in stiffness can result in an early collapse of the wall, even with a gradual rise of hydrostatic water level. This study has also evaluated the behaviour and damage patterns of masonry walls with two different slenderness ratios (single brick/24.5 and double brick/11.7) under flash flooding and prescribed the maximum percentage of surface area of inundation that the walls can resist. The importance of considering hydrodynamic impulsive loading in designing masonry buildings vulnerable to flash flooding and the capability of the modelling technique developed in this research for evaluating their vulnerability under these flooding scenarios are highlighted

    Sliding behavior at the graphene oxide and polyethylene interface

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    Harnessing their excellent physical attributes, two-dimensional nanostructures have gained prominences as reinforcements in polymer nanocomposites. Given the intricate structure of nanofillers and the varied interfacial connections, in-depth understanding of the strengthening mechanisms becomes pivotal for optimizing nanocomposite design. By varying the GO's morphology, a notable divergence of approximately 30% is evident in the interfacial shear strength. This divergence is attributed to the mechanical interlocking effect instigated by the presence of -O- and -OH functional groups. Functionalizing with groups like -CH3-CH2-NH2 (-Ethylamine) and -(HOCH2)3CNH2 (-TRIS) enhances the mass density of PE polymers at the interphase, which changes the interface sliding (low-density interphase) to the cohesive sliding during the pull-out process. As a result, the maximum interfacial shear strength (204–223 MPa) of these two samples is much larger than that of the pristine GO/PE (149–151 MPa), and even comparable with the pure PE's tensile strength. Intriguingly, shorter or highly flexible functional group exhibit a comparatively weaker influence on the interfacial shear strength. Moreover, as the sliding surface shifts toward the cohesive zone, diminishing sample thickness (less than 60 Å) generally corresponds to augmented interfacial shear strength due to the boundary confinement effect. In summary, this work offers a comprehensively elucidation of GO/PE pull-out behavior, facilitating the design of nanocomposites with exceptional mechanical performance.</p

    Using individual approach to examine the association between urban heat island and preterm birth: A nationwide cohort study in China

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    Background: Evidence suggests that maternal exposure to heat might increase the risk of preterm birth (PTB), but no study has investigated the effect from urban heat island (UHI) at individual level. Aims: Our study aimed to investigate the association between individual UHI exposure and PTB. Methods: We utilized data from the ongoing China Birth Cohort Study (CBCS), encompassing 103,040 birth records up to December 2020. UHI exposure was estimated for each participant using a novel individual assessment method based on temperature data and satellite-derived land cover data. We used generalized linear mixed-effects models to estimate the association between UHI exposure and PTB, adjusting for potential confounders including maternal characteristics and environmental factors. Results: Consistent and statistically significant associations between UHI exposure and PTB were observed up to 21 days before birth. A 5 °C increment in UHI exposure was associated with 27 % higher risk (OR = 1.27, 95 % confident interval: 1.20, 1.34) of preterm birth in lagged day 1. Stratified analysis indicated that the associations were more pronounced in participants who were older, had higher pre-pregnancy body mass index level, of higher socioeconomic status and living in greener areas. Conclusion: Maternal exposure to UHI was associated with increased risk of PTB. These findings have implications for developing targeted interventions for susceptible subgroups of pregnant women. More research is needed to validate our findings of increased risk of preterm birth due to UHI exposure among pregnant women

    Building a bridge : LEGO as a kinaesthetic tool to facilitate play-based learning in early childhood and beyond

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    Play-based learning has long been identified as a rich pedagogical tool for the holistic development of children. However, within schools, there is pressure for educators to deliver instruction through more teacher-directed approaches to meet external regulatory requirements including national testing. This conceptual chapter seeks to understand how careful design of play-based experiences, along with consideration of the teacher facilitation within the classroom setting, can impact the learning outcomes. Using the popular toy LEGO, we examine the use of kinaesthetic learning tools to bridge the gap for play-based learning between Early Childhood and formal school settings

    The Development of Cultural Capital Through English Education and Its Contributions to Graduate Employability

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    Graduates’ employability has been an important goal of education and requires further research to uncover how education can support employability. Particularly in this globalized and multicultural world, English language and cultural understanding are acknowledged as two primary factors for desirable career outcomes. This study, therefore, investigates the development of cultural capital through learning English language and how such cultural capital contributes to English language learners’ employability. The study was guided by (Tomlinson, 2017) framework of graduate employability and employed semi-structured interviews with eleven participants from eight academic and professional disciplines. The findings revealed that cultural capital could be developed through the diversity of formal, non-formal, and informal forms of English language learning. The findings also indicated that cultural capital was evidently crucial in a way that it serves to develop human, social, psychological, and identity capital, all of which are components of graduate employability. Pedagogical implications and directions for future research are recommended for effective development of cultural capital in different forms of education (formal, informal, and non-formal) and for further exploration of cultural capital and employability in Vietnamese higher education

    Positive Indigenous role models and maths

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    Four posters, featuring positive Indigenous role models, combine indigenous perspectives with engaging maths tasks which can be explored with learners.Background / Related research project:In 2016, we embarked on an Australian Research Council Indigenous Discovery (IN150100045) project titled, “Unlocking the learning potential of Indigenous and low socio-economic young people’s learning potential: Mathematics for future success”. The project aimed to develop new knowledge concerning the mathematics learning potential of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and low socio-economic young people in juvenile detention in Queensland, Australia. It sought to construct theory that explained the efficacy of mathematics instruction received in one juvenile detention centre in terms of engagement and learning that built on the young people’s knowledge and capacity to make connections to their culture and experiences. More specific project aims included exploring children’s and young people’s existing mathematics knowledge with respect to their culture, experiences and background and relating this to mathematics and numeracy knowledge required for understanding, academic progression, and future employment. The aim of developing new knowledge about how children and young people’s mathematics and numeracy knowledge could be used as an enabling feature, in relation to the actions of their teacher, to unlock their learning potential in mathematics was critical for the project. We sought to develop new knowledge about teachers’ mathematics, mathematics-education beliefs and knowledge with regard to leading and changing teaching pedagogy to improve the learning experiences of the children and young people in order to unlock, reveal and improve their mathematics achievement. From investigating these interactions, the project identified a pedagogical approach for teaching mathematics and numeracy to children and young people in juvenile detention centres—culturally responsive pedagogy. Finally, the project designed and developed a tailored program that unlocked and supported the learning potential of children and young people in juvenile detention. The study built on many years of research we conducted with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and low socio-economic schools and communities across Australia (Cooper, Baturo, Ewing, Duus &amp; Moore, 2007; De Plessis &amp; Ewing, 2017; Ewing, 2011; Ewing &amp; Cooper, 2014; Ewing, Cooper, Matthews, Baturo &amp; Sun, 2009; Ewing, Sarra, Cooper &amp; Matthews, 2014; Ewing, 2017; Sarra &amp; Ewing, 2021; Sarra, Matthews, Ewing &amp; Cooper, 2011). This research had demonstrated to us that effective mathematics and numeracy instruction for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and low socio-economic students must (a) be culturally responsive, taking account of local language and culture, family and community, (b) have the highest expectations and, (c) focus on pattern, connections and big ideas.Related publication:Ewing, B., Sarra, G. (2023). Culturally Responsive Pedagogy for Indigenous Students in Juvenile Detention. In: Educating Indigenous Children in Australian Juvenile Justice Systems. Springer, Singapore. DOI 10.1007/978-981-19-8684-0_5 (https://eprints.qut.edu.au/237926/

    On-Demand Insurance

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    On-demand insurance is growing rapidly with predictions that by 2030 the global insurance market will evolve to contain highly dynamic, usage-based products that are tailored to individual customer behaviours and will transition from an annual renewal model to a continuous cycle, with products that constantly adapt to individual behavioural patterns-driven by application of data and individualised risk models. The availability of “big data” in conjunction with technological advances in artificial intelligence (AI), predictive analytics and blockchain create the foundation and operational capacity for new on-demand insurance products and opens doors to new and exciting opportunities within the insurance industry. Globally, insurtech start-ups have taken the lead in addressing the demand for customisable on-demand insurance, but large institutional insurers are responding to this trend by engaging emerging technologies and delving into transformational options to complement traditional services. Big data in conjunction with AI-driven analytics can be used to more precisely delineate the scope of cover provided. For example, big data and AI analytics enable insurers to monitor an insured’s activities in real time (such as motor and health risks) with the data about that insured’s behaviour (such as speeding in an insured motor vehicle). In principle, this enables an insurer to vary the scope of the cover or premium payable by way of real-time variations, which could extend to a policy termination or premium increases if certain behaviours occur. This chapter considers on-demand insurance and the associated technological developments supporting its global growth and development, as well as the risks and challenges to be addressed. The fraud implications of on-demand insurance and the potential for distributed ledger technology or blockchain initiatives to assist in fraud detection and risk prevention are also addressed.</p
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