26199 research outputs found
Sort by
Regen-D: Template-Based Games for Sustainability and Regeneration
Get PDFRegen-D is a format for creating and playing serious games, and its name comes from regenerative design. Serious games are games for purposes beyond mere entertainment, such as collaboration or education. These games are powerful educational and facilitation tools because players are active in a group as they engage in dialogue with each other and interact with a game environment
Vibrational Exercise for Crohn’s to Observe Response (VECTOR): Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial.
Get PDFCrohn's disease (CD) is a long-term inflammatory gastrointestinal disorder, often adversely affecting physical, emotional, and psychological well-being. Pharmaceutical management is habitually adopted; although medicinal therapies require continuous administration, are associated with significant side effects and often associated with low adherence rates. Whole body vibration (WBV) represents a non-invasive technique, that provides vibration stimulation to the entire body. As WBV appears to target the physiological pathways and symptoms pertinent to CD epidemiology, it may have significant potential as a novel non-pharmaceutical intervention therapy in CD. This paper presents the study protocol for a randomised controlled trial investigating the impact of WBV on health outcomes in individuals with CD. This 6-week, parallel randomised controlled trial will recruit 168 individuals, assigned to receive WBV and lifestyle education 3 times per week compared to control, receiving lifestyle education only. The primary outcome of the trial will be the difference from baseline to post-intervention in health-related quality of life between the groups, assessed with the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Quality of Life Questionnaire. Secondary outcomes will include between-group differences in other questionnaires assessing fatigue, anxiety and pain, measures of physical fitness, and biological markers for disease activity and inflammation. Statistical analyses will follow an intention-to-treat approach, using linear mixed-effects models to compare changes between time points and both trial groups. Ethical approval was granted by the Nottingham Research Ethics Committee (REC: 24/EM/0106) and the study has been registered prospectively as a clinical trial (NTC06211400)
Optimised solution-phase synthesis of NanoMIPs for protein detection in electrochemical diagnostics
Get PDFNanoMIPs are nanoscale molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) ranging in size between 30 to 300 nm offering a high affinity binding reagent as an alternative to antibodies. They are being extensively research for applications in biological extraction, disease diagnostics and biosensors. Various methodologies for nanoMIP production have been reported demonstrating variable timescales required, sustainability, ease of synthesis and final yields. We report herein a fast (< 1hr) method for one pot aqueous phase synthesis of nanoMIPs using an acrylamide-based monomer and N,N'-methylenebisacrylamide crosslinker. NanoMIPs were produced for a model protein template namely haemoglobin from bovine species. We demonstrate that nanoMIPs can be produced within 15 minutes. We investigated reaction quenching times between 5 and 20 minutes. Dynamic light scattering results demonstrate a distribution of particle sizes (30 nm to 900 nm) depending on reaction termination time, with hydrodynamic particle diameter increasing with increasing reaction time. We attribute this to not only particle growth due to polymer chain growth but based on AFM analysis, also a tendency (after reaction termination) for particles to agglomerate at longer reaction times. Batches of nanoMIPs ranging 400 to 800 nm, 200 to 400 nm and 100 to 200 nm were isolated using membrane filtration. The batches were captured serially on decreasing pore size microporous polycarbonate membranes (800 to 100 nm) and then released with sonication to isolate nanoMIP batches in the aforementioned ranges. Rebinding affinities of each batch were determined using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, by first trapping nanoMIP particles within an electropolymerized thin layer. Binding constants determined for NanoMIPs using the E-MIP sensor approach are in good agreement with surface plasmon resonance results. We offer a rapid (<2 hr) and scalable method for the mass production (40-80 mg per batch) of high affinity nanoMIPs
Towards an understanding of the role of sociocultural learning in family firm longevity.
Get PDFSociocultural learning occurs when social interaction takes place and is influenced by the prevailing values and beliefs of the particular group. The focus of this research is the family firm which is defined in general terms as a business owned and managed by members of a single family. Family firms form an important part of the Cumbrian economy and those that have survived to a third generation of family ownership, growing to medium or large companies in the process, are of particular significance. This research examines two such firms from the perspective of sociocultural learning, focusing particularly on situated learning and community of practice theory. Communities of practice are an integral part of daily life; in the context of this research, they refer to the workplace. This study examines two aspects: firstly, the nature of learning between the family members and their staff, and that occurring between experienced staff and newcomers to the company. Secondly, it investigates the impact of power relations on learning within the organizations. Using a constructivist interpretivist approach, a case study method was adopted, and interviews were conducted with family directors in two companies and members of management in one of them. The research found that practices in both companies were consistent with situated learning theory. Shared learning was not only key to innovation and adaptability but also contributed to the maintenance of the culture passed down from the previous generations. It was further identified that the potential for learning in the two organizations was facilitated or impeded by the way management power was exercised. The study concludes that people, values, and learning and adaptability are important aspects of family firm success and, depending on the way in which they are managed, may contribute to the firm’s longevity
Detecting and Clearing Explosive Devices (ladmines/UXO/IDE) Using Small-Scale Customised Drone - Part I
Get PDFIn this study, a small-scale customised drone – the so- called Maggy – was developed to simplify and automate the procedures of cleaning explosive devices. We present here the first part of the paper. The conculding part of the paper will be publsihed in March issue. Maggy was instrumented with innovative intelligent automated techniques and magnetometer sensor technologies. Maggy’s performance was assessed in field tests conducted in Latvia and the United Kingdom. The outcomes, obtained in the open-air minefields and the benchmark assessments, verify the viability of the technologies, methods, and approaches integrated into Maggy for the efficient and economical detection of legacy landmines and IDE/UXO. This research provides the related research community with fundamental design and implementation parameters (e.g. flight speed, flight altitude) in building and using magnetometer-integrated Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS). The improved versions of the developed easy-to-use compact technology are aimed to be deployed by humanitarian demining teams to expedite their clearing operations safely and efficiently
RUGBY MUM: AN INSIDER’S TAKE ON GRASS ROOTS RUGBY LEAGUE CULTURE
Get PDFThis thesis reports on a philosophically grounded, socio-cultural investigation into the behaviours of people supporting, influencing, and affected by their involvement in grass-roots Rugby League. A motivation to conduct the research was to understand the characteristics of the anti-social and often abusive behaviours that have been witnessed, to learn more about the problem in close quarters, in order to consider from a more informed stance potential ways to address it (or elements of it). Ethnography has provided the methodological means for the researcher to live alongside the issues as they have occurred, observing through the lens of a Rugby Mum. With full ethics approval, the research has been conducted overtly and covertly, from the touchline to the boardroom and onto social media.
Positionality of the researcher in the field, and in theory, as well as the means of reporting from data once collected, have been driving considerations in this research and thesis presentation. To the former, strong consideration is given to scoping the ontological, epistemological, and methodological stances to conduct this socio-cultural research. To the latter, there is a predominant emphasis upon storytelling throughout the thesis, using tactics drawn from creative non-fiction to report upon the data with impact and poignancy. Alongside and developing from refined field notes, the majority of data is elevated to short stories, vignettes, personal narrative, poems and a short play.
Captured within this thesis is how, during the course of this investigation, the researcher experienced a major shift in participant-observation modes, from being relatively covert in her fieldwork activities at the start of the research, towards becoming relatively overt towards the end. Her researcher role and interests became known as the investigation progressed and thus her mission being recognised by those who frequented the rugby league space. Significantly this shift was accompanied by a social traverse from being an accepted ‘insider’ as a rugby mum on the club circuit, to becoming a relative ‘outsider’ as Rugby Mum the Researcher. These ethical and social shifts have influenced how the
research has proceeded on the ground over the 6 years, but has also influenced the [selected] content and style of its presentation in this thesis, i.e. her duties to protect the innocent as well as ‘the guilty’.
In conclusion the research reveals the lived experience of becoming and being an ethnographic field researcher, with the incumbent honed skills of reporting honestly and sensitively her observations and inferences. The philosophical reflections of a Rugby Mum, with her interconnected roles and
responsibilities in life, show that the consequences of getting too close to the
chronic behavioural problems in grass roots Rugby League are high. What was
an unquestioned love of the game becoming an informed decision to walk
away… perhaps. What is learned is that the problems encountered and reported
upon in this thesis are extremely complex and cannot be dealt with by some
questionnaires or online survey about mental health, or Likert responses to
witnessing aggression on the touchline or in a game. With a wealth of knowledge
developed from this study, the Rugby Mum has ‘exited the field’, for now, but she
makes the recommendation that the potential antidotes to these problems in
Rugby League lay in education initiatives. Initiatives that must go all the way from
touchline to include those in the Boardroom
Perioperative Hyperhidrosis: Case Reports of Two Patients and Literature Review
Get PDFPerioperative hyperhidrosis (POH) can present as excessive sweating within hours after anesthetic induction and may persist up to 24 hours postoperatively following general anesthesia. While commonly a benign finding, excessive or persistent POH can be disconcerting for the patient and can occasionally signify an underlying infection, electrolyte disturbances, or autonomic dysregulation.
A systematic approach to managing POH has not been published. We report the cases of two patients with excessive sweating under general anesthesia, highlighting their clinical presentation and management. We also propose a clinical algorithm to standardize the management of POH
Identifying predictors for food insecurity in England: a cross-sectional database analysis
Get PDFBackground: Nutrition plays a significant role in non-communicable disease worldwide and is a modifiable risk factor. Food security is defined as the ability of a household or individual to afford and access sufficient healthy and nutritious food. Food insecurity rates in the UK are among the worst in Europe and rising food prices have disproportionately affected lower income households. We aimed to identify predictors for food insecurity in England using nationally representative data. Methods: We conducted a database analysis on data collected in the ‘Food and You 2: Wave 6’ public cross-sectional dataset. Data were analysed from a mixed survey, collating 3,033 responses to the United Stated Department of Agriculture Household Food Security Survey Module, which defined food security status. We calculated risk ratios (RR) for food insecurity in relation to each independent variable, including sex, respondent age group, household size, presence of children in household, income, employment status, urban/rural living status, ethnicity, chronic conditions and Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD). Results: 72.3% (n = 2,194) were food secure, 23.4% (n = 710) were food-insecure. Variables associated with increased food insecurity risk included all respondent age groups below 65 year old, household size of 5 or more, presence of children under 16 years and under 6 years, household income less than £64,000 per annum, unemployed individuals, students, Asian / Asian British and African / African British ethnicities, presence of one or more chronic conditions and IMD of 1. Conclusions: In this analysis of nationally representative data, age, household size, presence of children, income, employment status, ethnicity and IMD were all associated with significantly increased risk for food insecurity. Further work is required to understand the relationship between these variables and food security in order to develop screening tools to identify those at highest risk of food insecurity in the population. This will help facilitate the effective provision of support to those who need it the most
Towards the Development of a Tribotronic Seal
No full textLip seals play a critical role in rotating machinery across various industries by preventing the egress of process fluids or lubricant from machine elements, and the ingress of dirt or contaminants. This research advances the development of intelligent lip seal technology within the framework of Tribotronics, using various testing methods and an adaptive control system. A novel test apparatus was created, integrating sensors and actuators, thermal imaging, real-time data acquisition, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi wireless connection protocols for data collection. An actuation system was designed to respond dynamically to changes in temperature and radial pressure to control leakage, and empirical models were developed to correlate key operational parameters with seal performance. Additionally, a control system was developed to optimize seal performance in real-time.
The research involved a series of experiments to characterize seal behaviour under various operational parameters in both lubricated and dry conditions. Testing in these conditions simulates real operating conditions to obtain baseline data in normal (lubricated) and extreme conditions (dry) to determine the seal’s ability to function during lubricant starvation. Testing also included stress relaxation tests, friction measurements, torque analysis, direct temperature measurement, leakage measurements and thermal imaging. Data was collected across a range of speeds, eccentricities, and radial loads, with particular attention to the interplay between these factors.
Key findings include: the establishment of correlations between temperature at the seal-shaft interface and eccentricity or offset, as well as between frictional load and eccentricity, with lower frictional loads observed at greater offsets. It was also found that actuator load is directly related to radial load. Stress relaxation was quantified as a significant factor in seal operation, with relaxation rates influenced by strain history. The research demonstrated that leakage rate is correlated with operating speed and radial load, while friction was observed to peak at startup before settling to lower steady-state levels. Torque was shown to increase proportionally with speed and eccentricity but decrease at specific offsets. Operating temperature stabilized between 55-65°C during normal and moderately eccentric conditions. Additionally, turned shafts exhibited better fluid retention but lower surface bearing indices compared to plunge ground shafts.
The research contributes to knowledge in the field of Tribotronics and intelligent lip seal technology. The contributions include the development of novel test equipment capable of real-time data acquisition and adaptive control. A control algorithm for leakage was introduced, which dynamically adjusts outflow based on radial pressure and shaft rotational speed. Additionally, new empirical findings were generated, providing valuable data on the relationships between operational parameters and seal performance. The research also extends the application of existing tribological principles to enhance the design and control of lip seals, paving the way for more efficient and reliable sealing technologies
To scan or not to scan? Comparing the effectiveness and cost differential of insoles manufactured from foam-box casts versus direct scans in treating musculoskeletal conditions of the foot and ankle: A double-blinded, randomised controlled trial
Get PDFBackground: Foot orthoses produced using computer-aided-design and manufacturer (CAD/CAM) are commonly used to treat musculoskeletal conditions of the foot and ankle, however minimal evidence exists as to the most effective method used to capture the patients foot shape. This trial aimed to determine the effectiveness and cost of insoles manufactured from a direct scan of the foot compared with those manufactured from foam-box casts.
Methods: This double blinded clinical trial randomly assigned participants with lower limb musculoskeletal pathologies into two groups and provided them with custom CAM/CAM foot orthoses manufactured either from a direct scan of the participant’s feet (direct scan group) or from foam-box casts of their feet (foam-box cast group). 114 participants were recruited asked to wear their foot orthoses for 12-weeks. The Foot Health Status Questionnaire (FHSQ) was completed at baseline, 4, 8 and 12-weeks to evaluate the primary outcome measure of pain, as well as secondary outcomes for foot function, foot health and footwear, and the Orthotic and Prosthetic User Survey Client Satisfaction with Device module (OPUS-CSD) which was completed at 12-weeks. Adherence was measured using a daily wear-diary recorded over 12-weeks. The number of manual insole adaptations was also recorded, and staff time, material and transportation costs were evaluated.
Results: 112 participants completed the trial. Despite no significant between-group differences, both groups reported significant improvements in pain, function and foot health from baseline to 4, 8 and 12-weeks, which all exceeded their respective minimum important differences. The direct scan group reported greater satisfaction at 12-weeks (p=0.04), greater adherence (p<0.001), and required less insole adaptations (n=4) compared to the foam-box cast group (n=15) (p=0.006). Overall costs and staff time costs were higher in the foam-box cast group.
Conclusions: CAD/CAM insoles are effective in reducing pain, and improving foot function and health after 4-weeks, and sustained at 12-weeks, however the method of shape capture does not affect these responses. Over 12-weeks participant satisfaction and adherence was greater when using the direct scan approach, which also required fewer manual insole adaptations. There was a greater overall cost associated with foam-box insoles. Clinicians are therefore recommended to use direct foot scanning over foam-box casting when prescribing CAD/CAM insoles for patients with MSK foot and ankle conditions