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The PLATO mission
Get PDFPLATO (PLAnetary Transits and Oscillations of stars) is ESA’s M3 mission designed to detect and characterise extrasolar planets and perform asteroseismic monitoring of a large number of stars. PLATO will detect small planets (down to <2REarth) around bright stars (<11 mag), including terrestrial planets in the habitable zone of solar-like stars. With the complement of radial velocity observations from the ground, planets will be characterised for their radius, mass, and age with high accuracy (5%, 10%, 10% for an Earth-Sun combination respectively). PLATO will provide us with a large-scale catalogue of well-characterised small planets up to intermediate orbital periods, relevant for a meaningful comparison to planet formation theories and to better understand planet evolution. It will make possible comparative exoplanetology to place our Solar System planets in a broader context. In parallel, PLATO will study (host) stars using asteroseismology, allowing us to determine the stellar properties with high accuracy, substantially enhancing our knowledge of stellar structure and evolution. The payload instrument consists of 26 cameras with 12cm aperture each. For at least four years, the mission will perform high-precision photometric measurements. Here we review the science objectives, present PLATO‘s target samples and fields, provide an overview of expected core science performance as well as a description of the instrument and the mission profile towards the end of the serial production of the flight cameras. PLATO is scheduled for a launch date end 2026. This overview therefore provides a summary of the mission to the community in preparation of the upcoming operational phases
INVESTIGATING FAMILY LANGUAGE POLICY STRATEGIES WITHIN MULTILINGUAL FAMILIES IN CYPRUS
Get PDFThis mixed-methods research project investigates the language interventions and accompanying language ideologies incorporated by 20 linguistically intermarried families who have or are currently raising bilingual children whilst residing in the Republic of Cyprus, based on the theoretical underpinning of Family Language Policy (FLP). These language interventions are defined as Family Language Strategies (FLS) in this thesis.
The study begins with a quantitative methodology of a Family Language Activities pack, consisting of a family profile, a language timeline and a Family Language Strategies section, aimed at contextualising family background data and their reported language practices to raise their children bilingually, and their opinionated beliefs of these practices’ feasibility and effectiveness to incorporate. The activities pack findings reported an overwhelming favouritism towards use of monolingual nursery rhymes and storybooks, explicit choice between monolingual/international schooling and using monolingual grandparents as childminders, whilst strategies relating to the One Parent, One Language (OPOL) scored significantly lower than expected.
The qualitative part of the methodology saw these results expanded on by the participating parents taking part in semi-structured interviews to discern their justifications for choosing certain strategies, and report on their language ideologies towards child bilingualism. Drawing on a combination on both stages of this mixed methodology through an analysis of General Inductive Theory and Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, the results demonstrated that there is an overwhelming feeling of parental pride for raising bilingual children in the family environment and a will for their children to experience the wider world for further study and work opportunities with the extra languages they possess, and a strong correlation between the mother tongues one possesses, and their association of identity with both their domestic and heritage nation.
The results of the study discovered language practices centred around the incorporation of the inner family language network taking precedence in these families’ FLP, followed by use of leisure-based practices, whilst methods of explicit instruction using members external to the family language network were the least popular to use. These were linked to ideologies focused on preserving authentic ethnic, heritage and cultural identity of the bilingual child, whilst highlighting the importance of parental involvement and input for bilingual child-rearing. Additional ideologies centred around elite bilingualism, and broadening the prospects the child could successfully achieve with bilingualism were frequently discovered throughout the data analysis process. The notion of impact beliefs was discovered to play a role in determining how invested a bilingual parent was to incorporate certain FLS, including the level of involvement they felt they should take in attempting to manage their children’s language development. Challenges found in bilingual child-rearing were also cited by the families involved, including accessibility of TL material, lack of minority language support, and the difficulty of adhering to an FLP in a busy daily routine.
This study pushes for further research into innovative and previously undiscovered language strategies used by intermarried parents within the field of FLP, and how these strategies are set to evolve and be implemented through constant global mobility with future generations of multilingual families settling in minority language communities such as that of Cyprus, where English is not the official language
Playing with Telepresence Robots for Design Speculation
Get PDFThis workshop explores how telepresence robots can be used for playful design speculation, leveraging their inherent asymmetries to create engaging and innovative experiences. By focusing on playfulness instead of purely utilitarian applications this workshop seeks to transform the limitations of telepresence robots into opportunities for creative interaction. We wish to explore the ways in which we can exploit the asymmetrical capabilities of remote and local users of telepresence robots. Given the person using the robot will always have more constraints due to the technical limitations of the robot (e.g., limited movement, limited space awareness, etc), we want to investigate if moving away from utilitarian applications towards playfulness can help make these robots more attractive and useful. In this workshop participants will adapt physical games using embodied methods embodied design ideation methods, such as magic machines, embodied sketching, and soma bits, to create playful interventions with robots and to discover new ways to enhance telepresence technology. The focus is on embracing asymmetry to foster innovative, inclusive, and enjoyable interactions
Departures from standard disc predictions in intensive ground-based monitoring of three AGNs
Get PDFWe present ground-based multiband light curves of the AGN Mrk 509, NGC 4151, and NGC 4593 obtained contemporaneously with Swift monitoring. We measure cross-correlation lags relative to Swift UVW2 (1928 Å) and test the standard prediction for disc reprocessing, which assumes a geometrically thin optically thick accretion disc where continuum interband delays follow the relation . For Mrk 509 the 273-d Swift campaign gives well-defined lags that increase with wavelength as , steeper than the thin-disc prediction, and the optical lags are a factor of longer than expected for a simple disc-reprocessing model. This ‘disc-size discrepancy’ as well as excess lags in the u and r bands (which include the Balmer continuum and H , respectively) suggest a mix of short lags from the disc and longer lags from nebular continuum originating in the broad-line region. The shorter Swift campaigns, 69 d on NGC 4151 and 22 d on NGC 4593, yield less well-defined shorter lags d. The NGC 4593 lags are consistent with but with uncertainties too large for a strong test. For NGC 4151 the Swift lags match , with a small U-band excess, but the ground-based lags in the r, i, and z bands are significantly shorter than the B and g lags, and also shorter than expected from the thin-disc prediction. The interpretation of this unusual lag spectrum is unclear. Overall these results indicate significant diversity in the relation across the optical/UV/NIR, which differs from the more homogeneous behaviour seen in the Swift bands
How to become a data synthesis expert in IBD: a clinician’s guide to cutting through the noise
Get PDFResearch and evidence are evolving daily in the field of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). This represents a significant problem for the IBD clinical team or researchers in the field. Data synthesis is a useful tool to identify, select, appraise and analyse research data to help solve this issue. However, it can seem to be a highly complex and, therefore, challenging form of research to read and apply. In this article, I have identified four key areas of awareness or learning to support IBD clinical and research teams in interpreting and using data synthesis. These include appraisal of clinical trials using structured bias domains, reading between the lines of forest plots, recognising and understanding how certainty of findings is assessed and finally highlighting a key area of misunderstanding in network meta-analysis. While by no means an exhaustive digest, this article should support in key areas and enhance uptake of evidence-based IBD care
Investigating the Impact of Family Drug and Alcohol Courts on Parental Reunification and Offending: A Data Linkage Study
Get PDFFamily Drug and Alcohol Courts (FDACs) are a type of problem-solving court, which uniquely both treat parental problems and adjudicate. This study investigates whether FDACs improve family reunification rates and their sustainability compared to ordinary care proceedings, and reduce parental offending. This presentation will evaluate the feasibility of linking administrative datasets from FDAC, Cafcass, and the Police National Computer (PNC) to create a novel cross-justice linked data asset. In this ESRC-funded study, we have successfully linked individual-level records from FDAC case files, Cafcass and the PNC, creating a longitudinal dataset of approximately 6,500 parents. Deterministic and probabilistic linkage techniques ensured accurate matching while minimising linkage error. Linkage quality was assessed through match rates, data completeness, and variable consistency. The final dataset enables longitudinal analysis of reunification rates and their sustainability (measured by recurrence of care proceedings), followed by parental offending trajectories. Data quality assessments explore challenges and best practices in linking justice and family court records. The data linkage process was conducted in several stages. First, person and case identifiers were collected from FDAC case files and successfully linked to Cafcass records. Matching criteria based on demographic and case characteristics were then established, and the matched comparison group was selected from ordinary care proceedings, ensuring comparability with the FDAC sample. Finally, the combined FDAC and comparison cohorts were linked to the Police National Computer (PNC) to obtain offending histories. Linkage success rates were high across all stages, with minimal missing data. These results demonstrate the feasibility of integrating sensitive administrative datasets, highlighting best practices in cross-sector record linkage and establishing a foundation for future research on justice and family court interventions. This study demonstrates the feasibility and value of linking administrative data to evaluate FDACs’ impact on family reunification and parental offending. By integrating justice and family court records, it establishes a framework for future research, informing evidence-based policy decisions on problem-solving courts and their role in promoting family stability and reducing reoffending
Enhancing Public Safety with Digital Twins for Indoor Air Quality Monitoring by Non-Experts
No full textDigital Twin technology has been used in many different domains to integrate disparate and complex data sources into a single, comprehensible system. A less explored
field is monitoring indoor air quality and building efficiency by providing real-time visualization and spatially contextualized data in commercial buildings. Managers of commercial buildings often have little or no training in indoor air quality, heating ventilation and air conditioning systems (HVAC), or building efficiency. This makes it difficult for them to evaluate environmental and efficiency data, if such data are available. This study evaluates the effectiveness of Digital Twins in 2D Desktop and 3D Virtual Reality to support non-expert user engagement, data interpretation, and spatial understanding for indoor air quality and building efficiency analysis. Sensors were installed in a mixeduse office/light industrial space, with a system infrastructure that collects and stores historical data readings. A comparative study was conducted between i) a traditional web-based dashboard (the control condition), ii) a 2D, and iii) a Virtual Reality Digital Twin using a within-subject research design involving non-expert participants, to determine the efficacy levels of user engagement with the data presentation mechanisms of each system, their spatial understanding, and their ability to conduct data interpretation. The findings demonstrate that VR Digital Twin supports increased spatial awareness and understanding, immersion, and data discovery, and the 2D Digital Twin system provides clarity and accessibility for trend analysis. The study contributes by i) validating the role of Digital Twins for Indoor Air Quality; ii) exploring user perceptions on different Digital Twin mediums in terms of user engagement; and iii) highlighting the potential of Digital Twins for public safety, particularly in indoor environment
Retaining doctors in organisations in socioeconomically deprived areas in England: a qualitative study
Get PDFObjectives To identify factors that improve retention in under-doctored areas that experience difficulties in maintaining sufficient medical workforce.
Design Qualitative study based on semi-structured interviews, collected as part of a larger study.
Setting Four purposely sampled geographic case study sites in England. Three case study sites were selected as areas that struggled to recruit and retain doctors and one as an area that is oversubscribed. This comprised 27 NHS Trusts, plus 1449 GP practices.
Participants 100 National Health Service (NHS)-employed doctors (including general practitioners, consultant specialists, specialty and specialist doctors, resident doctors/doctors in postgraduate training and locally employed doctors) were interviewed between December 2022 and March 2024.
Findings Participants shared their experiences of organisational levers that impact on decisions about working life and retention in the workforce. Two key themes explained factors influencing retention. First, participants discussed feeling valued by the organisation, both in terms of material circumstances and in relationships with colleagues. Second, the theme of autonomy and opportunity explored why doctors chose to stay in areas that typically experience difficulties in maintaining sufficient staffing.
Conclusions Many studies focusing on workforce examine why staff leave, but by focusing on factors that influence retention, greater understanding of specific facets of organisational culture can be used to inform policy and practice.
Trial registration number ISRCTN95452848