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A critical analysis of CIMSPA's transformative aspirations for UK Higher education sport and physical activity vocational education and training provision
Get PDFThis paper provides a critical analysis of the Chartered Institute for Management of Sport and Physical Activity's (CIMSPA) transformative aspirations for UK Higher Education (HE) based Sport and Physical Activity Vocational Education and Training (SPAVET) provision. In doing so, we apply selected elements of Giddens’ Structuration theory to offer an analysis of CIMSPA’s structural properties (as rules and resources) and dimensions (signification, domination and legitimation). Illustration of CIMSPA’s structural properties and dimensions was developed through adopting an institutional analysis strategy alongside a document analysis method. Publicly available strategic documents and web-based resources (N = 18) were selected and analysed using open-coding techniques. Our analysis shows how continued state-sanctioned decentralisation of the UK HE sector has led to CIMSPA becoming an increasingly influential transformative structure; attempting to use its structural dimensions and resources as a medium to gain and exercise power, to promote (signification) – market-orientated discourses, practices and pedagogies in HEI provision, (domination) – in an attempt to significantly influence regulatory control over UK SPAVET provision and (Legitimation) – create partnerships which normalise its position and message within selected UK HEIs. We conclude that whilst the transformative aspirations of CIMSPA offer a number of possibilities for the HE SPAVET sector, they also raise critical questions. The central issue requiring debate is how these aspirations shift dialectical control towards vocationally focused, market-orientated principles and away from the liberal educational, research-led principles of some current UK HE SPAVET provision
The Role of Optimism and Psychosocial Factors in Athletes Recovery from ACL Injury: A Longitudinal Study
Get PDFDespite a growing interest into the role of psychosocial factors during the recovery period following sports injuries, there remains a paucity of longitudinal studies examining the indirect relationships between psychosocial factors, psychological responses, and recovery outcomes. The purpose of this study was to construct and test a conceptual model which examined the indirect relationships between psychosocial factors, rehabilitation adherence, and perceived knee function up to 12 months post anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) surgery. A prospective, longitudinal, and repeated measures design was employed, wherein 81 injured athletes (Mage 26.89, SD = 7.52) completed measures of psychosocial factors, rehabilitation adherence, and perceived knee function on seven occasions (pre-surgery to 1 year post-surgery). Bayesian structural equation modeling evaluated the hypothesized indirect relationships proposed within the conceptual model. The main findings from this study was empirical support for a time-ordered, conceptual model which demonstrated that pre-surgery optimism had a significant overall indirect effect on perceived knee function at 12 months post-surgery (sum of indirect; αβ = .08, post. SD = .05, CI [.01, .04]), as well as a specific indirect effect through secondary appraisal at 1 month post-surgery, efficacy at 2 months post-surgery, and rehabilitation adherence at 6 months post-surgery (αβ = .03, post. SD = .03, CI [.00, .10]). Collectively, this study provides support for a number of previously hypothesized, but not empirically examined, indirect relationships between psychosocial factors and recovery outcomes. In doing so, we provide a conceptual model which has the potential to help guide individualised treatment recommendations, as well as identify individuals at risk of compromised recovery outcomes following ACL surgery
The effect of different priming activities performed 24 hours prior to competition
Get PDFThe purpose of this study was to examine if performing a lower body resistance training priming activity effects athletic performance completed 24 hours later. University level field hockey players (N = 10) completed 1 control (CON) and 2 experimental trials on separate days. A randomised, counter-balanced experimental design with cross-over was used across three conditions. The CON trial consisted of complete abstention from physical activity. For the ‘strength’ (STR) experimental trial participants performed a parallel back squat exercise for 5 sets of 2 repetitions with 90% 1RM; while for the ‘hypertrophy’ (HYP) experimental approach was 3 sets of 10 repetitions with 75% 1RM. Subjects attended a testing session 24 hours after each trial, consisting of CMJ, SJ, 22-cm DJ, 38-cm DJ and 40 m sprint. The 5 m sprint performance was significantly better (p < 0.05) for CON group when compared to the HYP group. No other significant differences were highlighted between trials. The results indicate that performing resistance training in-line with STR and HYP the day before competition does not improve athletes’ performance. The results also suggest how a lower body STR priming activity can be implemented the day before competition without negatively impact subsequent performance. For the strength and conditioning coach, this may be a useful window to train athletes during the ‘in-season’ schedule
The Acceptability and Influencing Factors of an Internet-Based Tinnitus Multivariate Integrated Sound Therapy for Patients With Tinnitus
Get PDFObjective:
To explore the acceptability and influencing factors of an Internet-based Tinnitus Multivariate Integrated Sound Therapy (iT-MIST). The individually tailored sound therapy used narrowband noise centered on the patient’s tinnitus frequency in combination with natural sounds and relaxing music.
Design:
Patients with tinnitus were given a 1-week trial of iT-MIST. Semistructured interviews were then carried out and a thematic analysis used to analyze, identify, organize, and report factors discovered in the data.
Study Sample:
Semistructured interviews were carried out with 11 participants, 2 women and 9 men, mean age 39.82 years.
Results:
The first theme identified from patient interview analysis was their motivation to undertake and expectations of iT-MIST. Nearly half of the participants indicated that advice from the physician was considered very important and professional. Benefits acknowledged by most participants from their iT-MIST experience were accessibility, convenience, time- and cost-effectiveness, and emotional benefit. However, a few participants with poor understanding of tinnitus and iT-MIST showed a negative acceptability with doubtful thoughts and complaints about technical issues such as being easily interrupted by messages and phone calls.
Conclusion:
Patients with tinnitus in this study were not universally accepting of the iT-MIST therapy. Concerns about their tinnitus and ability to comply with doctor’s recommendations were the main influencing factors. Attitude or willingness to explore new therapies facilitated its use. Emotional benefits, for example, relaxation and comfort, were seen to sustain motivation, while doubtful thoughts and technical problems negatively affected acceptability
Economic Granularity Interval in Decision Tree Algorithm Standardization from an Open Innovation Perspective: Towards a Platform for Sustainable Matching
Get PDFIn the context of the application of artificial intelligence in an intellectual property trading platform, the number of demanders and suppliers that exchange scarce resources is growing continuously. Improvement of computational power promotes matching efficiency significantly. It is necessary to greatly reduce energy consumption in order to realize the machine learning process in terminals and microprocessors in edge computing (smart phones, wearable devices, automobiles, IoT devices, etc.) and reduce the resource burden of data centers. Machine learning algorithms generated in an open community lack standardization in practice, and hence require open innovation participation to reduce computing cost, shorten algorithm running time, and improve human-machine collaborative competitiveness. The purpose of this study was to find an economic range of the granularity in a decision tree, a popular machine learning algorithm. This work addresses the research questions of what the economic tree depth interval is and what the corresponding time cost is with increasing granularity given the number of matches. This study also aimed to balance the efficiency and cost via simulation. Results show that the benefit of decreasing the tree search depth brought by the increased evaluation granularity is not linear, which means that, in a given number of candidate matches, the granularity has a definite and relatively economical range. The selection of specific evaluation granularity in this range can obtain a smaller tree depth and avoid the occurrence of low efficiency, which is the excessive increase in the time cost. Hence, the standardization of an AI algorithm is applicable to edge computing scenarios, such as an intellectual property trading platform. The economic granularity interval can not only save computing resource costs but also save AI decision-making time and avoid human decision-maker time cost
Determinants of Innovation Ecosystem in Underdeveloped Areas—Take Nanning High-Tech Zone in Western China as an Example
Get PDFHigh-tech zones are an important platform for local governments in China to carry out regional collaborative innovation and an important carrier for the construction of a regional innovation ecosystem. The evolution path of innovation ecosystem in a high-tech zone is divided into three stages: enterprise collection, industrial cluster, and system integration. The innovation subjects form a complex network system that transcends the physical boundary. This paper studies the relationship between innovation input, innovation output, and innovation environment from the perspective of cluster innovation ecosystem structure. Using data mining technology, this paper establishes an index variable system of the innovation ecosystem in a high-tech zone, which includes innovation input, innovation output, and innovation environment. Based on the data of the Nanning National High-tech Zone in China, empirical tests were carried out, using factor analysis and regression analysis to analyze the quantitative relationship between the input, output, and innovation environment of the Nanning High-tech Zone’s innovation ecosystem, and to explain the relationship between each other and the overall innovation of the high-tech zone. This research has certain practical significance for enriching and perfecting the theory of industrial clusters and studying the evolution of the innovation ecosystem of high-tech zones from a micro level. It has important, enlightening significance as a reference for the construction of innovative high-tech zones and the enhancement of high-tech zones’ independent innovation capabilities
From emo kid to stylish GQ Gent and back again: Matty Healy and hybrid masculinity
Get PDFThis article examines the evolution of the appearance of British musician, Matty Healy, lead singer of contemporary band The 1975, in his performance as a hybrid man in style and fashion magazines. Hybrid masculinity is often used by young white men as a form of assimilating aspects from marginalized groups into performing their identities. This is to distance themselves from the narrow confines of hegemonic masculinity through transgression. Healy’s performances of gay and feminized hybrid masculinities have emerged through his clothing, from early national success as a typical ‘emo’ kid ‘dressed in black from head to toe’ to a fully groomed, suited and booted Englishman, cover star of GQ and in demand as a model. Prior to global fame, Healy’s style referenced rock stars of the past and he was admired for his simple black clothing, boyish emo good looks and curly hair; style blog IdleMan.com refers to him as a ‘gothic hipster’. Yet in concert with his stylist, Patricia Villirillo, Healy has begun to play on the more feminized aspects of emo fashion such as performing in women’s skirts and dresses, and arguably has produced a twenty-first-century emo aesthetic. Moreover, he also adopts the appearance of a powerful man in a suit or for performances as well as photoshoots. Healy might now be dressed in a suit or tie for performing, as easily as he might wear a skirt, as many men in music have before him. Wearing skirts as an act of transgression highlights the lack of diversity in men’s clothing in its mundanity, and despite advances in acceptance of dynamic masculine identities through performing gay identities, performing hybrid masculinities through femininity, is still highly problematic
“Bionic Women and Men” Part 4: Cardiovascular, Cerebrovascular and Exercise Responses Among Patients Supported with Left Ventricular Assist Devices
Get PDFCurrent generation left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) have led to significant improvements in survival compared to medical therapy alone, when used for management of patients with advanced heart failure. However, there are a number of side-effects associated with LVAD use, including hypertension, gastrointestinal bleeding, stroke, as well as persistent and severe limitations in functional capacity despite normalization of a resting cardiac output (Qc). These issues are, in large part, related to chronic exposure to a non-physiologic pulse, which contributes to a hyperadrenergic environment characterized by markedly elevated levels of sympathetic nerve activity through a baroreceptor-mediated pathway. In addition, these machines are unable to participate in, or contribute to, normal cardiovascular/autonomic reflexes that attempt to modulate flow through the body. Efforts to advance device technology and develop biologically sensitive devices may resolve these issues, and lead to further improvements in quality-of-life, functional capacity, and ultimately, survival, for the patients they support
Muscle sympathetic reactivity to apneic and exercise stress in high-altitude Sherpa
Get PDFLowland-dwelling populations exhibit persistent sympathetic hyperactivity at altitude that may
alter vascular function. High altitude populations, such as Sherpa, exhibit greater peripheral
blood flow in response to acute stress, suggesting Sherpas may exhibit lower sympathetic
activity and reactivity to stress than Lowlanders. Muscle sympathetic activity (MSNA;
microneurography) including frequency (bursts/min), incidence (bursts/100HB), amplitude (% of
max burst), was measured at rest in Lowlanders (n=14; age=27±6yrs) at 344m and following a 8-
9 days of graded ascent to 5050m. Sherpa (age=32±11yrs) were tested at 5050m (n=8).
Neurovascular reactivity (i.e., change in MSNA patterns) was measured during maximal end
expiratory apnea, isometric hand-grip (IHG; 30% maximal voluntary contraction for 2 minutes)
and post exercise circulatory occlusion (PECO; 3 minutes). Total normalized SNA (au/min) was
calculated over 10 cardiac cycles during baseline and pre-volitional apnea breakpoint. Lowlander
burst frequency (11±5 bursts/min to 30±7 bursts/min; Mean±SD; p<0.001) and burst incidence
(25±13 bursts/100HB to 53±15 bursts/100HB; p<0.001) increased at 5050m. In contrast, Sherpas
had lower burst frequency (23±11 bursts/min; p<0.05) and incidence (30±13 bursts/100HB;
p<0.05) at 5050m. MSNA increases in Lowlanders and Sherpa during apnea at 5050m were
significantly lower than Lowlanders at 344m (both P<0.05), with a possible sympathetic ceiling
reached in Lowlanders at 5050m. MSNA increased similarly during the IHG/PECO in
Lowlanders at 334m and 5050m altitude and Sherpa at 5050m. Sherpa demonstrate overall lower
sympathetic activity and reactivity during severe stress. This may be a result of improved
systemic hemodynamic function associated with evolutionary adaptations to permanent
residency at altitude
Alginate films augmented with chlorhexidine hexametaphosphate particles provide sustained antimicrobial properties for application in wound care
Get PDFAll chronic wounds are colonised by bacteria; for some, colonisation progresses to become infection. Alginate wound dressings are used for highly exuding chronic wounds as they are very absorbent, taking up large quantities of exudate while maintaining a moist wound bed to support healing. Some alginate dressings are doped with antimicrobials, most commonly silver, but evidence regarding the efficacy of these is largely inconclusive. This manuscript describes the development and in vitro assessment of alginate materials doped with chlorhexidine hexametaphosphate (CHX-HMP), a sparingly soluble salt which when exposed to aqueous environments provides sustained release of the common antiseptic chlorhexidine. Comparator materials were a commercial silver alginate dressing material and an alginate doped with chlorhexidine digluconate (CHXdg). CHX-HMP alginates provided a dose-dependent CHX release which was sustained for over 14 days, whereas CHXdg alginates released limited CHX and this ceased within 24 h. CHX-HMP and silver alginates were efficacious against 5 major wound pathogens (MRSA, E. coli, P. aeruginosa, K pneumoniae, A. baumannii) in a total viable count (TVC) and an agar diffusion zone of inhibition (ZOI) model. At baseline the silver alginate was more effective than the CHX-HMP alginate in the TVC assay but the CHX-HMP alginate was the more effective in the ZOI assay. After 7 days’ artificial aging the CHX-HMP alginate was more effective than the silver alginate for four of the five bacteria tested in both assays. These materials may ultimately find application in the development of wound dressings for chronic wounds that provide sustained antimicrobial protection