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Ancient and medieval concepts of friendship
No full textFocusing on Plato and Aristotle, the Stoics and Epicureans, and early Christian and Medieval sources, Ancient and Medieval Concepts of Friendship brings together assessments of different philosophical accounts of friendship. This volume sketches the evolution of the concept from ancient ideals of friendship applying strictly to relationships between men of high social position to Christian concepts that treat friendship as applicable to all but are concerned chiefly with the soul's relation to God--and that ascribe a secondary status to human relationships. The book concludes with two essays examining how this complex heritage was received during the Enlightenment, looking in particular to Immanuel Kant and Friedrich Hölderlin
Advanced materials for applications in hydrogen storage, fuel cells and lithium ion batteries
No full textSpectroscopic route to monitoring individual surfactant ions and micelles in aqueous solution: A case study
No full textUsing a very popular and commonly used surfactant sodium dodecylbenzene sulfonate (SDBS, C18H29SO3Na) for a case study, we report a new method of monitoring different forms of surfactant molecules in aqueous solution and measuring their critical micelle concentration (CMC) by ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy. The forms of SDBS micelles are also investigated by synthesizing and characterizing NiB nanoparticles using the micelles as molecular templates. In addition, the observed shifts of UV-Vis bands are analysed from the viewpoint of the electrons locations and distributions within the molecules and the possible overlap of their electronic orbitals between neighbouring molecules in each micelle
Sunwater Project - An Innovative Water Desalination System operated with Solar Thermal Energy
No full textThe present document is in the field of renewable energies in combination with an innovative water desalination unit (WDU). During this project a future proof and environmentally friendly solar desalination demonstration plant was planned, modelled and simulated in Germany and finally installed in Egypt. This includes a model of the solar thermal system and a model of the innovative water desalination unit, which works with evaporation. Additionally a few measurement and simulation results are presented and discussed. A connection is also given between both aspects. Furthermore a few future prospects are added, which can be used to improve later installations.During this project it was shown, that it is possible to produce freshwater with state of the art technologies by using a solar desalination system. Solar energy can be tapped in a lot of areas to produce enough thermal heat to operate an evaporation desalination unit, which produces high-quality freshwater. The quality is high enough for the daily life in private homes and for the agriculture. If it should be used as drinking water it has to be accumulated with trace elements. During this project different difficult problems were found and solved, which should be taken into account during a later realisation and for a commercial use. One bigger problem is that the sun does not shine the whole day and therefore the produced thermal energy must be stored for a later usage, if the desalination unit should be operated 24 h/d. Another problem is the storage of the heat source itself, because the working temperature of the WDU is up to 95 C and therefore the long-time storage is very difficult due to heat losses during the night and convection of hot and cold water. Additionally it is very difficult to adjust the output temperature of a huge solar thermal field to the desired operation temperature.Finally the present document shows an innovative way for a worldwide future-proof freshwater supply, but the complete system is still optimisable and it could be very interesting to add new aspects in future projects
Spelling of medicine names in young people’s blogs about juvenile arthritis
No full textA significant number of adults in the UK struggle to cope with context-specific demands on their literacy: medicines pose specific challenges. People with long-term conditions may have been taking medicines since childhood: it is important through adolescence to building dependence, leading to a transfer of responsibility from the parent/carer to the young person. Building knowledge of basic information about medicines is part of that empowerment process. The objective of this abstract, as part of a wider study of the links between identity, arthritis and medicines for young people, is to explore young people’s proficiency in spelling the names of medicines used to treat juvenile arthritis
Empowering Transformations: Mrs Pepperpot Revisited Book review of Maria Lassén-Seger and Anne Skaret, eds. Empowering transformations: Mrs Pepperpot revisited . Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2014
No full textTransformative community engagement for sustainable regeneration
No full textCommunity engagement in regeneration is an important way to ensure that residents in deprived neighbourhoods have a say in decisions that affect them. The aim of this research is to provide a critical examination of community engagement through the development of practice and strategy of a UK housing association to deliver neighbourhood regeneration in a deprived neighbourhood in North West England. An action research approach using interlinked inquiry streams was undertaken with residents, senior managers and practitioners. The findings were used to develop community engagement strategy, articulate a model of engagement practice and enable the residents’ lived experience and views on service providers to be heard.Most literature about community engagement in regeneration is critical about the limited involvement of residents in partnerships, meetings and consultations. However, little attention has been paid to the exploration of transformative engagement where the process and outcome of engagement seeks to empower and enable self-determination of residents. This research addresses this gap and also further explores informal and creative engagement methods, the skills required for engagement practice, the role of housing associations in neighbourhood management and considerations for housing associations undertaking community engagement to achieve a lasting impact for people and place.This thesis has contributed to knowledge in two ways. The first contribution is the adaptation of Andrews and Turner’s (2006) Consumerist and Participatory Framework for the analysis of community engagement in a housing association context. The adapted framework is valuable in identifying different types of engagement approach within organisations. This framework addresses the gap in knowledge about the development of community engagement strategy. The second contribution to knowledge is the creation of a model of transformative community engagement practice, based on an extended definition of neighbourhood sustainability, the literature review and research findings.The research discusses the implications for housing associations undertaking community engagement in the current context, which is of particular relevance given the impact of UK public sector cuts and welfare benefit changes to poorer communities. Findings can be transferred to other housing providers or agencies looking to engage residents to achieve sustainable outcomes that will improve their lives and local neighbourhoods
A teacher's guide to classroom research
No full textA Teacher's Guide to Classroom Research 5E is a great 'one-stop' guide for trainee or qualified teachers looking to undertake classroom research. Through its friendly, supportive and authoritative approach, A Teacher's Guide to Classroom Research 5E tackles the big issues and questions of education research and offers a clear framework for doing classroom research. The updated fifth edition retains all the features that have made it so popular over the past thirty years - such as a rich range of insightful case studies demonstrating successful classroom research in practice - whilst offering expanded coverage of research methods and techniques. Key features include: How to get started on classroom research The principles and methods of classroom research for professional learning Interpreting and analyzing data Reporting classroom research Linking to teaching and learning Whether you are a trainee teacher undertaking some form of classroom-based research as an essential element of your teacher training course, or a qualified teacher doing research to explore and improve your practice, this classic and seminal text guides and supports you throughout the entire process from initial research idea to final dissemination
Efficient hydrogen storage and compressors by using metal hydrides.
No full textHydrogen gas is considered as the key "green" technology for its endless production-consumption procedure, known better as the "water-cycle". In this cycle, hydrogen is directly produced from water electrolysis and while forms water again, when combusted with oxygen, releasing energy. However, as the most lightweight gas, the volumetric density of hydrogen makes it inappropriate for use in most fuel applications. Hydrogen storage technologies that promote the compression of the gas, along with a solid state form of storage, based on the consumer needs, are a critical component to further development of a hydrogen fuel-based economy.Among the breakthrough hydrogen technologies, metal hydrides have drawn special attention due to their multiple properties. Their ability to react with hydrogen at various pressure and temperature conditions opened a whole new universe for storing energy in the form of hydrogen. Moreover, their unique capability to operate as thermal machines in order to compress hydrogen is of major importance and it will probably affect future hydrogen technologies.The research described in this thesis tries to reveal new metal hydrides with enhanced properties or to enrich knowledge on already investigated compounds. The research conducted was multidisciplinary in nature and all the involved detailed investigations tried to identify correlations between micro-structural and chemical properties with the thermodynamic properties of the metal hydrides. The research undertaken focused in three key research areas: (i) structural characterization by means of the X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) technique and Rietveld analysis, (ii) microstructural observation and microchemical characterization by SEM/EDX analysis and (iii) thermodynamic properties investigation by hydrogen absorption/desorption measurements. The interactions between these different properties can be complex, and they are not always resulting to data that can be easily exploited.In a more extensive manner, several Ti- or Zr-based intermetallic alloys have been synthesized from pure elements either using the arc-melting or the induction-levitation melting method. Both techniques are characterized as "Rapid Solidification Processes" with crucial influence on the crystal structure of the investigated compounds. The word "crucial" has been used in the last phrase since the rapid solidification of the liquid compounds result in fine, well-structured microstructures that are, as well as with the chemical properties, the key factor of their thermodynamic properties.All the compounds have been fully characterized by XRD and SEM/EDX, and they are mostly exhibiting the hexagonal C14 or the cubic C15 type Laves phases. More specifically, Zr-based compounds with Laves phase structures are considered advantageous hydrides for the large span of plateau pressures (0 - 1000 bar) they can exhibit when forming reversible metal hydrides.Since these intermetallic compounds are considered as low temperature hydrides, all hydrogen Pressure-Composition Isotherms (PCI) have been conducted in the range of 0 to ~100 oC. It has been shown that small compositional changes can affect the atomic structure that has a direct effect, in respect, on the thermodynamic properties. Thus, compounds with really close composition can have a very large difference in the equilibrium pressures in some given temperatures.Finally, the metal hydride hydrogen compression technology is presented in terms that metal hydrides with successive equilibrium pressures can be used in order to increase hydrogen pressure using only waste heat as driving force
Reache North West: education and training for refugee healthcare professionals in the UK, and the development of language and communication skills training
No full textMy original contribution to the body of knowledge is a portfolio of evidence which includes:• An evaluation of Reache (Refugee and Asylum seekers Centre for Healthcare professionals Education) North West using a PEST (Political, Economic, Social and Technological) analysis and Thematic Content Analysis of semi-structured interviews which led to the development of the Reache North West model of education and training for refugee healthcare professionals.• The development of a course entitled Safe and Effective Clinical Communication Skills and the dissemination of this course via conference posters, oral presentations and a published journal article. In the case of the conference posters, the course was identified as good practice on two occasions.• A business case which led to the development of the Salford Communication and Language Assessment Resource (SCoLAR).This thesis analyses and critically appraises the action research, ideas, reports and publications, from 10 years of organizational experience. This also includes over ten years of personal experience teaching and managing education programmes for international students, and over four years of working with refugee healthcare professionals, assisting them in returning to their professional role in the UK.The evaluation of Reache North West sought to answer the research question ‘Are we effectively preparing refugee doctors for work in the NHS?’ Although there were only 5 respondents the evaluation answered this question positively.Also discussed is the process for the development of the safe and effective clinical communication course and the difficulty in this course to other groups of internationally trained doctors. My observations and experience of working with International Medical Graduates who have encountered language and communication difficulties are also discussed with the acknowledgement that more robust research processes are needed for future research