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Towards adoption of mobile data collection for effective adaptation and climate risk management in Africa
Get PDFThe collection and use of data on climate change and its impacts are crucial for effective climate adaptation and climate risk management. The revolution in internet access, technology and costs has led to a shift from using traditional paper-based data collection to the use of Mobile Data Collection using Personal Digital Assistants (PDA) such as smartphones and tablets. In this paper, we report our experiences using both approaches for a household and business survey during a climate adaptation study in two Nigerian cities— Makurdi and Calabar. The focus of this paper is to evaluate and compare the effectiveness of using
traditional paper- based data collection and PDAs as data collection tools for climate change study in African societies. In Calabar, data were collected using paper questionnaires, while in Makurdi the questionnaires were developed on Open Data Kit (ODK) and administered using PDAs. Results show that data collection using PDA was faster, cheaper, more accurate and resulted in fewer omissions than paper-based data collection. There was a time saving of four (4) minutes per questionnaire and a 24% cost saving when using PDA. PDA provides additional benefits where platforms can collect images, videos and coordinates. This significantly improved the credibility of the data collection process and provided further data that allowed for the mapping of environmental phenomena by linking survey research with geo-referenced data in a geographic information systems platform to provide spatial representations of social and environmental system convergence. PDA offers a tool for collecting data that will make necessary socio-environmental data available in a faster, reliable and cheaper manner; future research can build on this study by discovering other possible but less highlighted benefits of PDA. Although, with great benefits, there are lessons to be learnt and issues to consider when deploying PDA in large-scale household survey
Poetry in a pandemic: Digital shared reading for wellbeing
Get PDFThis is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Journal of Poetry Therapy on 28/11/2022, available online: https://doi.org/10.1080/08893675.2022.2148135Unexpectedly taking place in the midst of a pandemic, this research examined historical and contemporary assumptions about the relationship between storytelling and wellbeing and asked how a shared reading group might be used to help repair individuals and communities as they emerge into the post-Covid world. It asked how storytelling can help us to come to terms with the collective trauma we have experienced by developing empathy and enlarging identity, and considered the role of digital technology in creating safe spaces for connection and reflection. The research aimed to provide a nuanced and in-depth account of the experience of shared reading for wellbeing, and to make practical recommendations for the future of such initiatives in community settings. It identified significant risks in shared reading and asked how these can be minimised, whilst being wary of stifling the many benefits of creativity by becoming too risk averse
Lossless Compression of Neuromorphic Vision Sensor Data Based on Point Cloud Representation
Get PDFVisual information varying over time is typically captured by cameras that acquire data via images (frames) equally spaced in time. Using a different approach, Neuromorphic Vision Sensors (NVSs) are emerging visual capturing devices that only acquire information when changes occur in the scene. This results in major advantages in terms of low power consumption, wide dynamic range, high temporal resolution, and lower data rates than conventional video. Although the acquisition strategy already results in much lower data rates than conventional video, such data can be further compressed. To this end, in this paper we propose a lossless compression strategy based on point cloud compression, inspired by the observation that, by appropriately reporting NVS data in a tridimensional space, we have a point cloud representation of NVS data. The proposed strategy outperforms the benchmark strategies resulting in a compression ratio up to 30% higher for the considered
The 2021 Cheshire Prize for Literature Anthology
No full textThe 2021 Cheshire Prize for Literature Antholog
Addressing gender inequalities
Get PDFEveryone has a gender identity. Consequently, we all experience the world through a ‘gendered’ perspective. Yet there are significant inequalities in people’s life experiences as a result of their gender. This article explores the impact of some of these gender inequalities and how we might work to address them
N-3 fatty acid supplementation mediates lipid profile, including small dense LDL, when combined with statins: a randomized double blind placebo controlled trial
Get PDFBackground: Epidemiological and clinical evidence suggests that high-dose intake of omega 3 fatty acids (n-3 FA)
have a favorable role in altering serum triglycerides (TG) and non-high density lipoprotein cholesterol (non-HDL-C)
when combined with statins in hyperlipidemic patients. Their efficacy in altering low-density lipoprotein cholesterol
(LDL-C) particle size is yet to be established.
Aim: This study evaluated the effects of supplementing 4 g/day Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and Docosahexaenoic
acid (DHA) on serum blood lipids, including small, dense LDL-C particle concentration, in hyperlipidemic patients
receiving stable statin therapy.
Methods: In this randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind parallel group study, 44 patients on statin therapy for
> 8 weeks with non-HDL-C concentrations above 130 mg/dL were randomized into two groups. For 8 weeks, together
with their prescribed statin, the intervention group received 4 g/day EPA + DHA (3000 mg EPA + 1000 mg DHA in
ethyl ester form) and the placebo group received 4 g/day olive oil (OO). Measurements of serum non-HDL-C, TG, total
cholesterol (TC), high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), LDL-C (including large - LDL I; intermediate - LDL II; and
small - LDL III subclasses), very-low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (VLDL-C) concentration, were taken at baseline and
post-intervention. Dietary intake was assessed with a weighed intake, 3-day food diary at week 4. Primary outcome
measures were percent change in LDL III, non-HDL-C and LDL particle number.
Results: At the end of treatment, the median percent change in serum LDL III concentration was significantly greater
in the n-3 FA group plus atorvastatin compared to placebo (− 67.5% vs − 0%, respectively; P < 0.001). Supplemen-
tation with n-3 FA plus atorvastatin led to significant reductions in serum non-HDL-C (− 9.5% vs 4.7%, P < 0.01), TG
(− 21.5% vs 6.2%, P < 0.001) and VLDL-C (− 36.9% vs 4.0%, P < 0.001) and TC (− 6.6% vs 2.1%, P < 0.001). Between the
groups, no significant difference in percent change in the serum concentration of LDL-C, HDL-C, as well as in the LDL
I and LDL II subclasses was observed.
Conclusion: In this group of hyperlipidemic patients on a stable statin prescription, OM3 plus atorvastatin improved
small dense LDL concentrations, non-HDL-C, VLDL-C and TG to a greater extent than atorvastatin alone. Further stud-
ies are warranted in this area
“It’s like being pushed into sea on a boat with no oars”: Breast cancer survivorship and rehabilitation support in Ireland and the United Kingdom
Get PDFBackground: Cancer survivorship is associated with co-morbidities including anxiety, depression, and cardiovascular disease. Rehabilitative care post treatment is vital for survivors’ psychological and physical well-being. The aims of this study were to investigate breast cancer survivors’ attitudes towards their health post-treatment; their awareness of co-morbidities associated with treatment; and their awareness of support systems available. Methodology: A qualitative research approach was employed, using semi-structured interviews with breast cancer survivors from the UK and Ireland. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. Eight breast cancer survivors were recruited through purposive sampling. Results: Two themes emerged from the data 1) Health & Rehabilitation Post Treatment, which included mental and physical health and a desire to control one’s own health in survivorship as well as a discussion around co-morbidities, and 2) Access to support services in survivorship which highlighted both positive and negative experiences of accessing support, as well as reasons for not accessing support in survivorship. Principal Conclusions: Access to rehabilitation support including diet, exercise and stress management are key components in survivorship. Rehabilitation and support services need to be more readily available for survivors to aid them in this journey and to educate them on the increased risk of conditions such as CVD with cancer treatment. Utilising current cardiac rehabilitation models could be a solution to provide a holistic cancer rehabilitation thus providing the lifelong support cancer survivors both want and need
The place of work-based learning in the development of leaders in a fast-changing world.
No full textThis developmental paper provides an overview of a collaborative research project to explore the lived experiences of senior leaders as they undergo a work-based learning programme with one of three universities in the North West of England. Qualitative data will be drawn from semi-structured surveys and interviews with leaders and thematically analysed to identify the experiences, key issues and challenges encountered. It is one of the first large scale studies of its kind, examining delivery of work-based leadership programmes across a range of industries and sectors in a post-pandemic context within the UK. The research is intended to provide a rich and descriptive picture of how both leaders and HEIs have adapted their practice during this period, identifying lessons learned, and making suggestions for future delivery of work-based leadership learning in an increasingly uncertain and challenging environment
Working with God: the practice of connecting Christian faith with everyday work
Get PDFAgainst the background of moves, especially in the Church of England, to close the so-called Sunday-Monday gap and encourage whole-life discipleship, this thesis explores the ways that Christians connect their faith with their everyday work in practice. The research is based on analysis of semi-structed interviews with thirteen self-identifying Christians in non-faith-based paid employment who were associated with an evangelical Anglican church in the South East of England. Working with the theological consensus that sees work as co-operation with God, I found that the dimension of closeness, or proximity, to God and God’s purposes characterised the most salient connections between faith and work. Using categories from David Miller’s The Integration Box/Profile, participants tended to experience their work most strongly as co-operation with God when they could perceive God’s purposes being achieved at the closest, micro, level of their everyday activities. This tended to be more salient than a perceptually more distant connection at the mezzo (corporate) and macro (societal) levels of the overall activity and purposes of the enterprise. Such micro level connections were reinforced by experiences of God’s presence and providential activity at that level, framed as personal encounters with God. The more that participants experienced these close connections in their workplace experience, the more they felt that they were working with, as opposed to merely for, God. This suggests that teaching an overarching, macro-level, theological framework within which daily work finds a place will not be sufficiently salient to overcome the Sunday-Monday gap on its own. In several cases the experience of close co-operation with God was associated with deliberate practices of attentiveness and reflection. The evidence suggests, however, that further encouragement and training in such practices, perhaps especially in a workplace group setting, could have a significant impact on workplace discipleship. In identifying the significance of proximity to God and God’s purposes and connecting the experience of proximity with particular Christian practices, this thesis resources practitioners aiming to nurture workplace discipleship
Mobility of Objects Across Boundaries 1000-1700
Get PDFMedieval Chester Retold. An exciting look at the medieval city with stories told through the objects everyday people used. This exhibition is part of a wider Arts and Humanities Research Council funded project, Mobility of Objects Across Boundaries, 1000-1700, led by University of Chester and University of Oxford
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