2,396,741 research outputs found
A marketing study of certain mathematics-based undergraduate courses at Brunel University
No full textThis Report presents some results of a limited study of the marketing situation of certain mathematics-based undergraduate courses at Brunel University
Brunel Small Business Leadership Impact Report: September 2021
No full textReportStudio GLUE was commissioned by Brunel Business School - https://alohaglue.com/2022/01/17/2022-1-17-brunel-small-business-leadership-impact-report-2021 which accompanied the Help To Grow Management (https://www.brunel.ac.uk/business-school/brunel-for-business/help-to-grow-programme) launch at Brunel University London.Executive Summary: The Small Business Leadership Programme, with its key focus on leadership and peer support, was designed to help businesses enhance their short-term recovery from the impacts of Covid-19 as well as their long-term resilience and growth
A survey of some fifth- and sixth-formers' perceptions of mathematics
No full textThis Report gives some results of a small but purposive survey of the attitudes of school fifth- and sixth-formers to mathematics as a subject and their opinions as to whether they wished to proceed to further study of mathematics. The survey was conducted by direct face-to-face interviewing of the pupils at their schools during the academic year 1990-1991. The interviewing and the initial analysis of the data were carried out by a fourth-year student, Mr R T Davies, in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at Brunel University as part of his Final Year Project. The author of this Report was closely involved with the work, as was Dr E J Davis of Henley Management College; both the author and Dr Davis had roles of project supervisors and independent roles concerning survey design and analysis
Technological change and the productivity paradox: The management of new technologies in UK retail banks
No full textThis thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.Successful implementation of new technologies is necessary for survival in today's increasingly competitive banking environment. The banking sector is now the UK's largest investor in new technology. As a result of de-regulation and new technological opportunities, the dominant market position of the traditional banks is under threat from new market entrants. Such organisations are harnessing the latest technology to develop their services, and are not constrained by the costs of running national branch networks and integrating a diverse historical legacy of incompatible computer systems.
This thesis addresses the question of why the massive investment by UK retail banks in information technology is not being translated into significant productivity gains. The issue is referred to in the literature as the IT productivity paradox. It will be argued that the importance of the banks to the economy as a whole, and the position of the industry as the UK's largest investor in new technology, make it a particularly suitable arena in which to study this phenomenon.
Six empirical case studies of recent new technology projects are analysed by the development of grounded theory. The findings indicate that dysfunctional organisational structures and cultures, together with poor management of expertise, combine to sabotage change and constrain the potential of new technology projects. Most significantly, a lack of organisational learning is contributing to the paradox. Even successful projects had limited impact because the lessons learned were not disseminated throughout the organisation. The study concludes that the full potential offered by information technology will continue to elude the banks until their apparently complacent attitude towards organisational change is addressed
Spherical wave diffraction by a rational wedge
No full textIn this paper we derive a new expression for the point source Green's function for the reduced wave equation, valid in an angular sector, whoseangle is equal to a rational multiple of . This Green's function is used
to find new expressions for the field produced by the diffraction of a
spherical wave source by a wedge, whose angle can be expressed as a rational multiple of . The expressions obtained are in the form of source terms
and real integrals which represent the diffracted field. The general resultobtained includes as special cases Macdonald’s solution for diffraction by ahalf plane; a solution for the problem of diffraction by a wedge of open
angle 3/2, i.e. a corner; a new representation for the solution of the problemof diffraction by a mixed soft/hard half plane; and a new representation for
the point source Green's function for Laplace's equation, valid in an angularsector whose angle is equal to a rational multiple of
Time-dependent estimates of concentration mean and variance for replicated instantaneous heavy gas releases
No full textThis report presents sets of time-dependent estimates of concentration mean, standard deviation and variance for a series of replicated instantaneous releases
of heavy gas carried out in a wind tunnel at Warren Spring Laboratory. The replicated nature of these experiments - there are 50 or 100 repetitions of each
experimental situation - provides a rare and welcome opportunity to derive these
estimates. More usually it is necessary to calculate time averages within a
single release; this, however, is appropriate only for a statistically stationary continuous release, it cannot be used for an instantaneous release. Considerable interest has lately attached to the time-dependent behaviour of mean and variance and to how these quantities depend on atmospheric conditions, source conditions
and position; this interest has been expressed in terms of separate consideration
of the quantities, in terms of the intensity (standard deviation divided by mean),
and in terms of possible fundamental relationships between them as suggested by
Chatwin and Sullivan (1990). The sets of estimates are presented here, without comment or discussion, in the hope of aiding this work
The assessment of posture and balance post-stroke
No full textThis thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.Physiotherapy for people with stroke has been found to be beneficial but details of the most effective interventions are unclear. Further development of the evidence base for stroke physiotherapy is limited by a lack of clinical practice models, sensitive clinically based outcome measures and effective stratification techniques to characterise homogenous groups of subjects. These issues are addressed here with regard to balance and posture. These aspects were chosen because they form a cornerstone of stroke physiotherapy as they are thought essential for the rehabilitation of functional activities.
A systematic review of assessment methods in the literature revealed a lack of measurement tools which met the utility criteria: reliability, validity, sensitivity to short-term change, suitability for a wide range of abilities, ease of use and suitability for different settings. This prompted the development of a new measurement tool. Firstly, a model of the clinical assessment process was developed using an adapted focus group method with neurological physiotherapists. This informed the content of a new measurement tool which combined an ordinal scale with functional performance tests- the Brunel Balance Assessment. The tool was evaluated in a series of studies involving 92 stroke patients. It was hierarchical (coefficient of reproducibility= 0.99, coefficient of scalability = 0.69), reliable (100% agreement) and valid as a measure of balance disability (r=0.58-0.97). The psychometric properties of the individual functional performance tests were also tested and found to be reliable (ICCs =0.88-1) and valid (r=0.32-0.63). Measurement error ranged 0-40% and the minimum change needed to detect true clinical change was calculated for each test.
Balance disability, measured with the Brunel Balance Assessment, is heterogeneous with sitting, standing and stepping balance forming distinct levels of ability (p<0.027). Consequently, the BBA could be used to stratify people with stroke according to balance ability. Weakness, sensation and age were significant independent contributors to balance disability (r2=82.7%). Balance ability was a strong contributor to independence in ADL (p<0.0001).
The findings of this thesis address the issues that have limited research into stroke physiotherapy with regard to balance disability. In relation to clinical practice, a robust measurement and stratification tool has been developed.Department of Health Studies, Brunel University and the Brunel University Research Enterpris
Virtual learning environment strategy working group (VLESWG) of Brunel University final report
No full textThe VLE Strategy Working Group (VLESWG) was established in September 2009 by the Information Steering Group (ISG) for the purpose of developing a ‘vision for e-learning’ at Brunel, with particular focus on the best option for the continued provision of a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE)
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