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Diffractive Enquiries for new temporalities of learning in Higher Education
No full textThis chapter considers how diffractive enquires (DE) enrich pedagogical practices for teaching and learning within the disrupted temporalities of contemporary Higher Education (HE). Human, material and environmental inequalities are the consequence of dominant modes of human knowledge making, production and consumption within which HE is implicated through socio-economic, historical, cultural and pedagogical practices. Pedagogies organised within linear, binary logics maintaining inequalities of access and engagement are disrupted by DE shift to see the world as deeply relational and entangled. Through re-configured temporal concepts of spacetimematter and re-turn, I show how DE are fluid, affective, experiential pedagogies of response-able knowledge making, paying attention to different relationalities across structural and symbolic inequalities. These proliferate multiple ways of knowing and practising in HE. DE’s commitment to ‘staying-with’ troubling concerns, opening and expanding rather than reflecting back, spurs responses of care and hope necessary to fulfil HE’s promise for (re)making liveable worlds through its teaching and learning. Through examples of student explorations of space, time and matter in Education I show how using multi-modal texts, theoretical and experiential insights are diffracted through each other, generating multiple perspectives and provoking new conversations. These encourage responses of empathy and imagination, rather than solution and resolve
Pedagogy
No full textTeaching international law is a challenging endeavour. The subject is broad and messy, with a panoply of priorities competing for attention. It is easy for the material to become convoluted and, in the worst instances, unmoored from reality. These qualities are particularly pernicious when academics teach international law from a Eurocentric perspective. Standard at most law schools, a Eurocentric approach focuses on state interactions in a vacuum, with little regard paid to the context or implications of their actions. By contrast, a TWAIL-based pedagogy does not treat international law as the starting or finish point of the discussion, but as a lens to understand human interactions. TWAIL scholars regard colonialism, imperialism, and exploitation as building blocks of the current world order and thus essential to the study of international law. This pedagogical approach collapses the Eurocentric confines of classical teaching about international law, taking students beyond the artificial ideal commonly displayed in textbooks. By engaging with the predation that colours international legal history, students learn that international law is not a flawless good but an instrument for the advance of a parochial worldview to the benefit of some and at the expense of others. Only once we recognise international law’s chequered character is it possible for us to conceive of a more progressive international law
The Effect of Type 2 Diabetes on Bone Quality: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Cohort Studies
No full textBackground: There is a significant knowledge gap and limited studies have been carried out to evaluate the effect of type 2 diabetes (T2D) on bone quality and skeletal fragility. Previous reviews have tended to focus primarily on bone mineral density (BMD) as a measure of bone quality. However, BMD does not fully reflect the risk of fracture, cannot distinguish between cortical and trabecular bone, and bone fragility in patients with T2D results not only from alterations in bone mineralisation, but also due to changes in bone microarchitecture. In this regard, assessment tools such as trabecular bone score (TBS) and trabecular microarchitectural parameters could be useful and practical tools for examining bone status in people with T2D. Aim: This review aims to examine the effect of type 2 diabetes on bone quality based on a variety of assessment tools. Method: The PRISMA checklist and PICOS framework were relied on for this systematic review and meta-analysis. Two researchers conducted the searches from database inception until 24/02/25. Databases including Academic Search Premier, APA PsycArticles, APA PsycInfo, CINAHL Plus with Full Text, MEDLINE, and the Psychology & Behavioral Sciences Collection were searched for relevant articles. The reference lists of articles were also searched. The Review Manager 5.4.1 software was used to carry out the meta-analysis. Results: Ten studies were included in the systematic review, while nine studies were included in the meta-analysis. Based on the narrative synthesis and meta-analysis, four distinct themes were established: bone mineral density, TBS and trabecular microarchitectural parameters, fracture risk, and body mass index (BMI). The meta-analysis of the effect of T2D on BMD showed that T2D significantly (p 0.05) on total BMD and area BMD compared to controls. In relation to TBS and trabecular microarchitectural parameters, the effect of T2D was not significant (p > 0.05) compared with controls. Furthermore, T2D did not have a significant effect (p > 0.05) on the incidence of hip fracture and non-spine fracture compared to controls. Following meta-analysis, it was found that the T2D significantly (p 0.05) on TBS, trabecular microarchitectural parameters, and the incidence of hip and non-spine fracture
Reinforcement Learning With Selective Exploration for Interference Management in mmWave Networks
No full textThe next generation of wireless systems will leverage the millimeter-wave (mmWave) bands to meet the increasing traffic volume and high data rate requirements of emerging applications (e.g., ultra HD streaming, metaverse, and holographic telepresence). In this paper, we address the joint optimization of beamforming, power control, and interference management in multi-cell mmWave networks. We propose novel reinforcement learning algorithms, including a single-agent-based method (BPC-SA) for centralized settings and a multi-agent-based method (BPC-MA) for distributed settings. To tackle the high-variance rewards caused by narrow antenna beamwidths, we introduce a selective exploration method to guide the agent towards more intelligent exploration. Our proposed algorithms are well-suited for scenarios where beamforming vectors require control in either a discrete domain, such as a codebook, or in a continuous domain. Furthermore, they do not require channel state information, extensive feedback from user equipments, or any searching methods, thus reducing overhead and enhancing scalability. Numerical results demonstrate that selective exploration improves per-user spectral efficiency by up to 22.5% compared to scenarios without it. Additionally, our algorithms significantly outperform existing methods by 50% in terms of per-user spectral effciency and achieve 90% of the per-user spectral efficiency of the exhaustive search approach while requiring only 0.1% of its computational runtime
The test-retest reliability of a 16.1 km time trial in trained cyclists using the Wattbike Pro ergometer in hot environmental conditions
No full textThe Wattbike Pro ergometer (Wattbike) is readily available and widely used by athletes, coaches, and researchers as a tool for cycling performance assessment. To-date, no literature has reported the test-reliability of relevant performance criterion using the Wattbike and a 10-mile (16.1 km) TT - which is the most prevalent race distance, often completed in the summer race season. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the reliability of 16.1 km TT performance in the heat using the Wattbike Pro ergometer. A cohort of trained cyclists volunteered to take part in this study (n = 16, mean ± SD age 36.4 ± 14.0 y, height, 1.77 ± 0.09 m, body mass 75.2 ± 7.3 kg, PPO 365.1 ± 55.2 W, V̇O2max 55.0 ± 9.5 mL.kg-1.min-1. Participants performed a familiarisation, prior to two 16.1 km TT on the Wattbike Pro ergometer separated by 3-7 days. Differences in mean completion time, power output, and speed were determined using paired samples T-tests, with quartile data assessed using repeated-measures ANOVA. Reproducibility of the performance measures was performed using the coefficient of variation (CV), intraclass correlations, technical error (rTE and sTE) and, Cronbach’s α. There were no significant differences between TT1 and TT2 for time, power output and speed (mean difference = 3.25 s, 3.2 W, and 0.15 km·h-1, respectively). All performance data demonstrated excellent reproducibility (CV range = 0.8 – 1.9%) with trivial sTE (0.16 – 0.20). The 16.1 km cycling TT when conducted on a Wattbike Pro ergometer demonstrates a very reliable performance criteria in cohorts of trained cyclists, when exercising in hot conditions. Athletes, coaches, and researchers alike, should be aware of the inter-bike reliability which has been previously reported, and ensure that the same ergometer is used when measuring performance, thereby ensuring the reliability of the 16.1 km TT
Baskerville Books at the Cadbury Research Library and the 'Great Baskerville Bible Crisis of 2020'
No full textThis year is the 250th anniversary of the death of John Baskerville (1707–75), a Birmingham industrialist and Enlightenment figure who made his fortune through the manufacture of fashionable japanware whilst forging a worldwide reputation as a printer. Baskerville is probably best known for the typeface which now bears his name. His typographic experiments put him ahead of his time, had an international impact and did much to enhance the printing industry of his day whilst the volumes he created in Birmingham are recognised as masterpieces of the art and craft of book making which ‘went forth to astonish all the librarians of Europe’. As well as printing in Birmingham Baskerville also became printer to the University of Cambridge, from where he issued four editions of the Book of Common Prayer and his great folio Bible which is still regarded as one of the world’s most beautifully printed books.
To commemorate the anniversary of his death, this article recounts the 2020 campaign to prevent the Boulton Family Baskerville Bible from being sold at auction with its likely loss to the nation as a whole. It also reviews the Baskerville volumes housed in the Cadbury Research Library [CRL] at the University of Birmingham, one of the world’s most comprehensive collections of material from the Baskerville Press, where the Boulton Family Baskerville bible is now housed
Relative age effect at Concacaf championships: Influence of sex, age, nationality, playing position, and playing status
No full textRelative age effects in soccer are typified by an overrepresentation of players born earlier in the selection year. Examinations of relative age effects remain limited in female players and developing soccer nations. The aim of the present study was to examine the influence of sex, age, nation, playing position, and playing status in international level soccer players under Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (Concacaf). The sample consisted of a total of 1,959 active soccer players from 24 soccer nations that competed in recent Concacaf Championships. Results indicated an evident relative age effect in male [ p < 0.05] but not female [ p = 0.81] players. Male players were over‐represented by players born in the first quartile for the U17 [ p < 0.01] level, however, this over‐representation did not transfer to the U20 or senior levels. No relative age effects were observed at any level for female players. A large proportion of nations demonstrated relative age effects in male, but not female samples. Relative age effects were shown for players participating at age group level, but not those ‘playing-up’. Results from this study highlight the continued disparity in relative age effects prevalence between male and female players raises further questions regarding the value of selecting relatively older players to metrics of success, transition, and selection for senior international soccer. This information can be used to advance talent identification and development in Concacaf nations
Microgrids’ Control Strategies and Real-Time Monitoring Systems: A Comprehensive Review
No full textMicrogrids (MGs) technologies, with their advanced control techniques and real-time monitoring systems, provide users with attractive benefits including enhanced power quality, stability, sustainability, and environmentally friendly energy. As a result of continuous technological development, Internet of Things (IoT) architectures and technologies are becoming more and more important to the future smart grid’s creation, control, monitoring, and protection of microgrids. Since microgrids are made up of several components that can function in network distribution mode using AC, DC, and hybrid systems, an appropriate control strategy and monitoring system is necessary to ensure that the power from microgrids is delivered to sensitive loads and the main grid effectively. As a result, this article thoroughly assesses MGs’ control systems and groups them based on their degree of protection, energy conversion, integration, advantages, and disadvantages. The functions of IoT and monitoring systems for MGs’ data analytics, energy transactions, and security threats are also demonstrated in this article. This study also identifies several factors, challenges, and concerns about the long-term advancement of MGs’ control technology. This work can serve as a guide for all upcoming energy management and microgrid monitoring systems
Towards a De-Polarisation of Climate Guidance for Landscape Design and Policy
No full textFor disciplines and professions concerned with the design and management of the physical environment, climate emergency has become an integral part of research and practice because these environmental challenges are inextricably linked to the land and how we use it. Working from an understanding of landscape as the vast infrastructure upon which we depend for everything, landscape is the setting for all matters of environmental sustainability, impacting towns, cities, and countryside, communities and well-being, economics, governance, and politics. This paper explores the extent to which landscape and landscape design are considered in professional guidance pertaining to climate emergencies and environmental sustainability. Noting a tendency for such policy and guidance in the UK to cluster around the opposite poles of generalised targets and highly detailed technological solutions, this paper raises questions about what is missing from the middle of this spectrum. Our findings show that beyond carbon and biodiversity targets and the technological solutions to meet them, policy has been slow to respond to the climate emergency in relation to the landscape level. Furthermore, policy frameworks largely fail to account for the cultural and/or intangible factors affecting carbon and sustainability measures, such as the quality of space and well-being. This research suggests that guidance and policy relating to holistic, integrated understandings of landscapes are key to addressing the climate emergency, which also provides quality places and spaces for our communities and nature alike
The Effect of a Lecture‐Based Educational Intervention to Improve the Nutrition Knowledge and Behavior of Plant‐Based Seventh‐Day Adventists Living in the United Kingdom
No full textBackground and Aims
The Adventist lifestyle, which encourages the consumption of a vegetarian or vegan diet, has been associated with several health benefits; however, the nutrition knowledge of Adventists about essential nutrients in the context of plant‐based diets has not yet been assessed, therefore, this study evaluated the efficacy of an expert‐led lecture‐based educational intervention on the nutrition knowledge and habits of plant‐based Seventh‐day Adventists.
Methods
The intervention, delivered in the form of an online lecture by a clinical nutrition expert, comprised a 30‐min lecture emphasizing the role of essential nutrients for vegans and vegetarians, the role of dietary supplements in COVID‐19 prevention. Nutritional knowledge was assessed by using a 25‐item questionnaire before and after the lecture, with a follow‐up survey administered 4 weeks after the lecture to examine changes in dietary behaviors and supplement use.
Results
Thirty‐seven participants completed the study. The mean test scores significantly improved from 8.49 (SD 3.75) pre‐lecture to 20.03 (SD 2.99) post‐lecture ( p < 0.001). Subsequent behavioral changes were reported, including increased supplement use and dietary modifications, underscoring the intervention's impact.
Conclusion
This study highlights the effectiveness of a targeted educational interventions in improving nutritional knowledge among plant‐based Seventh‐day Adventists. Health promotion activities conducted by the church should aim to inform church members of the need for well‐planned plant‐based diets and of the importance of appropriate supplementation