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Drawing the line: What’s Wat’s Dyke? Practice and process.
Get PDFOften neglected and misunderstood, there are considerable challenges to digital and real-world public engagement with Britain’s third-longest linear monument, Wat’s Dyke (Williams 2020a). To foster public education and understanding regarding of Wat’s Dyke’s relationship to the broader story of Anglo-Welsh borderlands, but also to encourage the monument’s management and conservation, we proposed the creation of a comic heritage trail (Swogger and Williams 2020). Funded by the University of Chester and the Offa’s Dyke Association, we selected one prominent stretch where Wat’s Dyke is mainly damaged and fragmentary and yet also there remain well-preserved and monumental sections. Around Wrexham, Wat’s Dyke navigates varied topographies including following and crossing river valleys, and it is accessible to the public in the vicinity of North Wales’s largest town. In this article we outline the dialogue and decision-making process behind the map and 10-panel comic: What’s Wat’s Dyke? Wrexham Comic Heritage Trail (Swogger and Williams 2021; Williams and Swogger 2021a–b). In particular, we consider the stages taken to adapt from the initial plan of producing a bilingual map guide in response to the circumstances surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns. This digital resource, published online in Welsh and English, guides visitors and locals alike along a central stretch of Wat’s Dyke around Wrexham town from Bryn Alyn hillfort to the north to Middle Sontley to the south. The comic heritage trail thus responds to the highly fragmented nature of the monument and utilises the linearity of Wat’s Dyke as a gateway to explore the complex Anglo-Welsh borderlands from prehistory to the present day. Building on earlier discussions (Swogger 2019), What’s Wat’s Dyke? illustrates the potential of future projects which use comics to explore linear monuments and linear heritage features (from ancient trackways and roads to railways and canals) constructed across the world from prehistory to recent times
From dyads to collectives: a review of honeybee signalling
Get PDFThis version of the article has been accepted for publication, after peer review and is subject to Springer Nature’s AM terms of use, but is not the Version of Record and does not reflect post-acceptance improvements, or any corrections. The Version of Record is available online at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00265-022-03218-1The societies of honeybees (Apis spp) are microcosms of divided labour where the fitness interests of individuals are so closely aligned that, in some contexts, the colony behaves as an entity in itself. Self-organization at this extraordinary level requires sophisticated communication networks, so it is not surprising that the celebrated “waggle dance”, by which bees share information about locations outside the hive, evolved here. Yet bees within the colony respond to several other lesser-known signalling systems, including the tremble dance, the stop signal and the shaking signal, whose roles in coordinating worker behaviour are not yet fully understood. Here, we firstly bring together the large but disparate historical body of work that has investigated the “meaning” of such signals for individual bees, before going on to discuss how network-based approaches can show how such signals function as a complex system to control the collective foraging effort of these remarkable social insect societies
Too many calories, refined carbohydrates, and saturated fat consumption endow to nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in Pakistani adults
Get PDFNonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) is one of the leading causes of liver disease worldwide. A healthy diet plays a significant role in the prevention of NAFLD. Few studies have been done in Pakistan to evaluate the dietary intake of patients suffering from NAFLD. This study aimed to look into the dietary intake of NAFLD patients being treated at a tertiary care hospital in Karachi, Pakistan
Objective: To determine the nutritional status of NAFLD patients.
Method: 118 NAFLD patients, aged 18 to 60, male and female, were enrolled. Patients with advanced liver or kidney failure, decompensated liver disease, hepatocellular carcinoma, acute flare, and chronic liver disease were excluded. This cross-sectional study used an interview-administered questionnaire to collect data on sociodemographic characteristics, anthropometric measurements, nutrition-related biochemical measurements, and dietary intake (24-hour diet recall and validated food frequency questionnaire). Data were analyzed using SPSS (VERSION) Statistics v26
RESULTS: Out of 118 subjects; 69% were female, Anthropometric data revealed that 41% were morbidly obese (BMI 29 >kg/m2). The average daily calorie and protein intakes were 2135 kcal and 64.2 gm, respectively. Dietary recall indicates a high consumption of saturated fat foods including paratha (34%), cake (16.9%), pizza (17.8%), banaspati ghee (11%), and consumption of high glycemic fruits like Mango (42%) and dates (32.2%).
Practical implication: this study will benefit that healthy diet plays a significant role prevention of NAFLD,and can reduce the burden of obesity and its complication in later life. Low carbohydrate intake, limiting saturated fat and increased physical activity play a vital role in management of NAFLD
CONCLUSION:
Participants with NAFLD had insufficient dietary patterns. This may be associated with lower consumption of fruits and vegetables, and increased intake of high saturated fat and glycemic index foods; behavioral strategies should be implemented to change this patient's overall dietary intake
Ideal models of good inpatient care for adults with intellectual disability: Lessons from England
Get PDFIn recent years, a significant proportion of inpatient facilities for people with intellectual disabilities and/or autism has been de-commissioned in England, This has resulted in individuals with intellectual disabilities being sent to distant hospitals far away from their families and carers leading to challenges in follow-up, community care and interventions. The impact of de-institutionalisation, has often caused patient trauma, family distress and subsequent discharge difficulties. Not every individual with intellectual disabilities and/or autism requires inpatient care but inpatient care when needed has to be local, adequate and appropriate. Aims: To evaluate current evidence of utility of inpatient models for people with intellectual disabilities and outline best clinical practice. Method: PubMed, CINAHL, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, Scopus, Web of Science were searched with key search terms. The search was conducted by the information specialist and identified abstracts screened further for inclusion criteria, methodological issues, and other appropriate characteristics. Twenty-three papers were included in the rapid review. Papers shortlisted had the inclusion criteria applied against the full text version independently by two reviewers. Disagreements regarding eligibility of studies was resolved by discussion and consensus within the project team. Key data related to in-patient models of care was extracted from the included papers, which included year of study, design, study objectives, target population, method/s tested, outcomes reported, country of study/studies, and results. Data extraction was performed by two reviewers and reviewed by the project team. Results: From the review of services for people with intellectual disabilities, we came across four broad models/frameworks/approaches. Evidence on what worked for inpatient service provision tended to be based on models developed and implemented locally. Conclusions: We make recommendations for the best clinical practice and standards. Both clinical service providers and policymakers need to be aware of specific needs of individuals with intellectual disability and/or autism.Funder: NHS England South-wes
Application of genetic techniques to conservation of the Critically Endangered Grenada Dove Leptotila wellsi
Get PDFThe Grenada Dove Leptotila wellsi is a Critically Endangered species endemic to the island of Grenada. It exists in two geographically isolated populations across the island. As an endemic on a small island with a limited and decreasing population, this species is at risk from genetic deterioration. Particular risks include inbreeding depression and accelerated loss of genetic diversity resulting from ongoing habitat fragmentation and population isolation. The work reported in this thesis aimed to provide the first genetic data for the Grenada Dove, assess its genetic status and determine what conservation management recommendations can be made to help ensure its long-term survival. A systematic literature review revealed geographical bias in how genetic approaches have been applied to the conservation of island bird species, under-representation of threatened species and highlighted a gap between genetic research and active conservation management. A protocol for obtaining usable genetic material from moulted plumulaceous feather samples was developed and showed that samples collected non-invasively in the field, that were kept in non-optimal conditions for deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) extraction, can be used effectively to sequence informative regions of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) for genetic analysis. The evolutionary and life history of the Grenada Dove were investigated by estimating its phylogenetic placement and using phylogenetic comparative methods for estimating unknown life history traits. The Grey-Chested Dove Leptotila cassinii was identified as the species with which the Grenada Dove shares the most recent common ancestor, with an estimated divergence of approximately 2.53 million years ago. Life history trait values were predicted for the Grenada Dove and suggest this species will be slow to recover after a major population decline. The mitochondrial genetic diversity of Grenada Dove populations was assessed for the two areas of occupancy. Two haplotypes were identified with one haplotype unique to the population in the West. Selective neutrality tests Fu’s Fs=0.78 and Tajima’s D=0.83 were positive and not significant, with an FST value = 0.71 suggesting a marked genetic divergence between the two populations. This study showed low mitochondrial genetic diversity, a non-expanding population and
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clear evidence for genetically isolated populations. Population viability analysis (PVA) was used to evaluate extinction risk and the potential for conservation management for the two populations of the Grenada Dove. This PVA identified that loss of forest habitat to commercial development is likely to have the biggest impact on extant populations and that conservation management to increase productivity is likely be the most effective conservation strategy. This thesis contributes novel information regarding evolutionary history, life history, population genetics and future population trajectories to inform long-term conservation actions for the Critically Endangered Grenada Dove
Immersive Virtual Reality for the cognitive rehabilitation of stroke survivors
Get PDF“©2022 IEEE. Personal use of this material is permitted. Permission from IEEE must be obtained for all other uses, in any current or future media, including reprinting/republishing this material for advertising or promotional purposes, creating new collective works, for resale or redistribution to servers or lists, or reuse of any copyrighted component of this work in other works.”We present the results of a double-blind phase 2b randomized control trial that used a custom built virtual reality environment for the cognitive rehabilitation of stroke survivors. A stroke causes damage to the brain and problem solving, memory and task sequencing are commonly affected. The brain can recover to some extent, however, and stroke patients have to relearn how to carry out activities of daily living. We have created an application called VIRTUE to enable such activities to be practiced using immersive virtual reality. Gamification techniques enhance the motivation of patients such as by making the level of difficulty of a task increase over time. The design and implementation of VIRTUE is described together with the results of the trial conducted within the Stroke Unit of a large hospital. We report on the safety and acceptability of VIRTUE. We have also observed particular benefits of VR treatment for stroke survivors that experienced more severe cognitive impairment, and an encouraging reduction in time spent in the hospital for all patients that received the VR treatment
‘‘Turning the Wheel of the Dharma’: A translation of Aśvaghoṣa’s Buddhacarita Canto 15 from a recently rediscovered Sanskrit manuscript
Get PDFThis article offers a first translation into English of the re-discovered Sanskrit text of Canto 15 of Aśvaghoṣa’s Buddhacarita. While Cantos 1–14 of Aśvaghoṣa’s kāvya, or long poem on the life of the Buddha, have survived in Sanskrit, it had been thought that Cantos 15–24 only survived in Tibetan and Chinese translations. But the Japanese scholar Kazunobu Matsuda, working with Jens-Üwe Hartmann, has recently identified the whole of Canto 15 embedded in a Sanskrit manuscript of the Tridaṇḍamālā, attributed to Aśvaghoṣa. While Matsuda has made a translation into Japanese, I offer a translation of the Sanskrit text of Buddhacarita Canto 15 into English. A distinctive feature of this translation is that I present a prose translation, conveying the Sanskrit syntax and vocabulary in an accurate form, alongside a verse translation, suggesting some of the poetic qualities of Ásvaghoṣa’s Sanskrit in the form of English blank verse and unrhymed ballad metre
What Kinds of Meditation Are There in Buddhism?
No full textAnswer to the question, What Kinds of Meditation Are There in Buddhism
The ambidextrous interaction of RBV-KBV and Regional Social Capital and their impact on SME management
Get PDFThis paper argues that regional culture, encompassed within intricate forms of social capital, is inextricably linked to the resource-based view (RBV) concept - focused on inimitable resources possessed by a firm. These resources encompass knowledge (pertaining to the knowledge-based view (KBV)) – including the cultural knowledge and understandings that reside in a given region - as a key resource that is available to a firm, creating resources in order to render it competitive. The paper conceptually develops RBV-KBV within an organizational ambidexterity framework and highlights how regional context, RBV-KBV and firm dynamics inter-operate. This responds to an important gap in the literature, underscoring the vital role of regional contextualised RBV-KBV. Rather than viewing these contexts as taken-as-given artefacts it is important to see them as culturally, socially, and historically constructed and rooted phenomena. Drawing empirically on a series of semi-structured interviews conducted with German manufacturing SMEs in the Baden-Württemberg (BW) region (SW Germany), this paper provides novel insights into how SMEs manage resources and regional social capital in order to expand judiciously into international (emerging) markets. In so doing, the paper presents a novel organizational ambidextrous conceptual framework showing how companies move from traditional exploitative and conservative regional cultural RBV-KBV bases to more explorative and innovative internationalising ones. Within this, the paper also contributes fresh insights into the explorative ‘hidden champions’ phenomenon by showing how the latent BW conservative RBV-KBV and its regional social capital-informed exploitative postures act as persistent moderating drivers of explorative internationalisation
The Bloomsbury Handbook of Popular Music, Space and Place
Get PDFThis chapter is part of an interdisciplinary volume, drawing from sociology, geography, ethnomusicology, media, cultural, and communication studies, which covers a wide-range of topics germane to the production and consumption of place in popular music. This chapter focuses on the recording studio, primarily within a popular music context, in the following areas: as a physical place where its function relies on social interactions to encourage creativity; as a place where virtual auditory spaces are created; and as a place where music practice can ultimately ascribe unique identities
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