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In this article, we analyse Il Memoriale della Shoah, the memorial of the victims of the Shoah in Milan, which was inaugurated in 2013 and, in 2015, was turned into a night shelter for destitute migrants. To understand the rhetoric and politics of the Memorial, we bring together the notions of affective practices, découpages du temps (lit. slices of time) and multidirectional memory. This analytic approach allows us to examine the nonlinear shape of remembering, the dialectic relationships between the spatialisation of time and the temporalisation of space, the ways in which emotions are brought into being semiotically in context, and the ethical questions that these feelings raise. Through detailed multimodal and affective analysis of the affordances of the built environment and its soundscape, the curation of the Memorial, the contextualisation of three guided tours (two online and one insitu) and politicised commentary on the Memorial's decision to shelter refugees, our paper illustrates the multi-layered character of the relationship between space and time – one in which the past, the present and the future partly overlap and mobilise political action. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article introduces the key issues and themes that the articles in the Special Issue aim to apply and develop in greater detail. First, we argue that the field of collective remembering can be conceived as a site of active contestation, rather than simply a means of communicating a historic past or our deontic position in relation to these pasts. Approaching collective remembering as a Lieu de Dispute allows us, in turn, to foreground three consequential dimensions of remembrance, which the articles in the issue examine in different ways: that collective remembering is an interpersonal, political and affective practice. This introduction discusses these three dimensions to collective remembering in greater detail, before outlining the remaining contents of the Special Issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Can traditional live theatre affect the identity formation of teenagers? Drawing upon a six-year, qualitative study of Canadian, independent school live theatre audiences and a review of identity formation and audience studies, this paper offers three findings of interest to high school English teachers. These speak to the need for English teachers to design their programme of theatre-going in light of students' digital habitus, to establish protocols around cellphone use, and to explore with students the defining characteristics of both digital media and live theatre. The paper concludes by suggesting the potential for live theatre to contribute positively to student's identity formation at a time when digital media is pervasive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This introductory article lays some theoretical ground that stimulated this special issue: first, the argument that affect is not "in", or indeed "outside of" the individual or the social, but relates to the circulation of emotion between different sites, objects or bodies; and, second, that how this circulation of emotion works, in and through discourse, has not been sufficiently taken up and explored by semioticians, linguists and (critical) discourse analysts. Through adopting a range of theoretical and analytic insights, applied to a wide variety of discursive/empirical materials generated, produced and consumed in diverse geopolitical contexts, the articles in his special issue make a significant contribution to our understanding of the ways that affect "circulates" through semiosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the affective practice of applause at the 2019 Holocaust Memorial Day national ceremony in Britain. Every year, the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust organises a ceremony to commemorate the victims of the Holocaust, all other victims of Nazi persecution, in addition to those killed in subsequent genocides perpetrated in Bosnia, Cambodia, Darfur and Rwanda. At the start of the 2019 ceremony, the audience were asked not to applaud in response to speakers and texts, and yet at five points in the ceremony some members of the audience still clapped. I approach applause as a collective behavioural sign of an emotional response to semiotic stimuli, reflecting routinised (that is, socially organised and patterned) relational actions which are shaped by and yet contribute to particular settings and circumstances. Utilising the theoretical insights of Wetherell, and the emplaced and embodied character of rhetorical ethnography, I position the discourse of the ceremony and audience reactions as an intertwined affective practice. The instances of sporadic, hesitant, clapping indicate an affiliative response on the part of (some) audience members, when their nation, life-story and/or experiences of genocide are acknowledged in the ceremony. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Burnett and Richardson's paper has two related aims. First, it develops a model of how gender is articulated within fascist and other far-right discourses based on a review of the relevant scholarship. This model is presented in the first section. Researchers have in the past suggested a gap, or even a wilful ignorance, of gender in studies of the far right, and claimed that the topic is 'neglected' and 'under-researched'. This gap is to some extent held open by disciplinary, historical and definitional boundaries that work fractally to split inquiry. Burnett and Richardson have thus read the literature in a kaleidoscopic fashion, including analysis across different historical periods and country contexts, to examine how gender surfaces in various 'fascist' discourses. This approach covered psychoanalytical, discourse analytical, historical, art historical, literary, political and anthropological approaches to gender and fascism. The second aim of the paper is to show how the model proposed is brought into relief in a particular country context: that of the United Kingdom since the Second World War. Gender in post-war British fascism has been the subject of several important studies, though none of them have specifically traced the textual journey of key ideas and themes related to gender in mediatized far-right discourse. Building on a discourse-historical analytic approach to the development of fascist politics of this period, Burnett and Richardson argue that paying attention to gender in fascist discourse is a useful lens through which to analyse the local and historical contingencies that make one fascist discursive formation differ from another. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of severe mental health conditions is strongly linked to our environments, particularly experiences of trauma and adversity. However treatments for severe mental health conditions are often primarily biomedical, centred around medication. For people diagnosed with schizophrenia or psychosis, this is antipsychotic medication. Although antipsychotics have been found to reduce symptoms and risk of relapse, some patients derive little benefit from these drugs, and they can lead to severe adverse effects. Subsequently, a high proportion of people do not want to take antipsychotics and request an alternative. Yet in the UK and in many countries there are currently no guidelines for stopping antipsychotics or formal treatment alternatives, despite such alternatives being available in some countries. For example, in Norway and Vermont (USA), in response to pressure from service user organisations, governments have mandated the establishment of "minimal medication" services. We examine whether everyone with a psychotic condition needs long-term antipsychotic treatment and evidence for alternative models of care. We recommend that healthcare providers should be encouraged to develop a psychosocial treatment package for people with psychosis or schizophrenia that provides a realistic possibility of minimising antipsychotic exposure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the attainment gap between black and minority ethnic (BME) students and white students has persisted for decades, the potential causes of these disparities are highly debated. The emergence of learning analytics allows researchers to understand how students engage in learning activities based on their digital traces in a naturalistic setting. This study investigates the attainment gap by analysing the differences in behavioural engagement between different ethnic groups. Using multilevel models of academic performance, demographics, and online traces of 149,672 students enrolled in 401 modules in a distance learning setting, we confirmed the existing attainment gap. After controlling for other demographics, module characteristics and engagement, BME students were between 19% and 79% less likely to complete, pass or achieve an excellent grade compared to white students. Given the same academic performance, BME students spent 4-12% more time on studying than white students. While the attainment gap remained persistent after controlling for academic engagement, our study further highlighted the inequality of attainment between BME and white students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A literature review published in 2008 outlined known relationships between gender, ethnicity, and academic attainment in UK higher education. In the period since this publication, many changes to the higher education sector have occurred, including raising tuition fees, an increased focus on widening participation, and an increasing interest in diversifying the curriculum. There is a need for an updated and expanded literature review to highlight whether the relationships between gender, ethnicity, and academic attainment remain the same one decade later. This article synthesises the current literature related to the impact of gender, social class, and ethnicity on higher education participation and academic attainment. We highlight the important role of intersectionality in understanding overarching trends. Altogether, this literature review shows that there are persisting inequalities in both participation and attainment based on gender, social class, and ethnicity. To conclude, we provide several suggestions for improving our understanding of these phenomena in the decades to come. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In reading British fascism as a cultural phenomenon, historians have started to chart the cultural products and visions of British fascists during the interwar and post-war periods. Such analysis has tended to focus on fascists' discourse on culture (particularly the ways that they position liberalism and modernism as degenerate), or on the cultural texts of fascists/fascism in the form of, inter alia, literature, music, dress and art. George Mosse goes as far as to argue that it is only through a cultural interpretation of fascism that we can come to understand the movement 'from the inside out'. However, the notion of fascist culture is contentious, and not simply because the meanings of both 'fascism' and 'culture' are highly contested. Eschewing Mosse's invitation to interpret fascism as culture, Richardson nevertheless argues that 'the cultural' can be understood as one approach to fascism. In this article, Richardson discusses six ways into a critical cultural analysis of the continuing presence of fascist political projects, focusing in particular on the British variant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A Latin square is a grid or array containing the same number of rows and columns. The cell entries are a sequence of symbols inserted in such a way that each symbol occurs only once in each row and only once in each column. Since the beginning of the twentieth century, Latin squares have been studied in the field of combinatorics. This article is concerned with the issue of who, according to the published literature, introduced Western mathematicians to Latin squares. The first mathematician to provide a depiction of Latin squares seems to have been Jacques Ozanam (1640–1718), who demonstrated the use of Latin squares in a problem based on playing cards. However, he did not discuss the analytic properties or the potential applications of Latin squares. The first mathematician to provide an analytic description of Latin squares seems to have been Leonhard Euler (1707–1783). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ‘promposal’ is a growing, North American high school ritual in which one graduating senior asks another to the prom in a creative, witty, public performance that is recorded and posted online. AYouTubesearch for ‘promposal’ yields over 49,000 hits, with videos receiving up to 8,000,000 views. What does the promposal reveal about the construction of gender and identity amongst teenagers in the digital era and the nature of the voices channelled, expressed or spoken? In a study of high school students' responses to the promposal as well as a discourse analysis ofYouTubevideos, this paper argues that: students use promposals to achieve social aims by constructing and presenting desirable identities and voices across multiple platforms; the performances of gender seen in online promposals tend to draw upon, reflect, and reify traditional, hegemonic patterns of behaviour and to amplify the male voice; and promposals are a means of announcing the debut of young people as productive contributors to the neo-liberal economy as they prepare to leave high school. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This investigation studied attainment in students with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) who were taking modules by distance learning with the UK Open University in 2012. Students with ASDs who had no additional disabilities were as likely as non-disabled students to complete the modules that they had taken, to pass the modules that they had completed and to obtain good grades for the modules that they had passed. Students with ASDs who had additional disabilities were less likely than non-disabled students to complete the modules that they had taken, but they were as likely as non-disabled students to pass the modules that they had completed and to obtain good grades for the modules that they had passed. Their lower completion rate presumably reflects the impact of their additional disabilities rather than their ASDs. In distance education, at least, students with ASDs tend to perform on a par with their non-disabled peers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent research on student learning in higher education has identified clear associations between variations in students’ perceptions of the academic environment and variations in their study behaviour. This study investigated a general theoretical model linking students’ demographic characteristics, perceptions and study behaviour with measures of outcome, and in particular, compared three accounts of the causal relationship between perceptions and study behaviour. Data were obtained from 469 postgraduate students at six British business schools. Path analysis was used to assess the causal relationships among the students’ age and gender, their scores on the Course Experience Questionnaire, their scores on the Revised Approaches to Studying Inventory and their ratings of general satisfaction with their programmes. This yielded evidence for the causal efficacy of most of the paths identified in the general theoretical model. In particular, as in the case of students taking more traditional academic subjects, there exists a bidirectional causal relationship between variations in students’ perceptions of the academic environment and variations in their study behaviour. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Universities in many countries are developing strategies to enhance the student experience. This focus has never been so important since the development of rankings and the use of student experience measures in institutional performance assessment. Australian government policies to link student experience measures to performance funding were a key driver to increase the prominence of the student voice between 2004 and 2008. This paper analyses the strategic plans of 33 Australian universities with the aim of outlining the extent to which the enhancement of student experience is embedded as one of their key priorities. This review comes at a time when universities in Australia and elsewhere are realigning their future strategies and directions to achieve government aspirations for tertiary education with the introduction of various policy instruments including the possibility of rewarding universities on the basis of student experience measures. The paper also provides a comparative analysis of government policies in Australia and the UK on the measurement and enhancement of the student experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This investigation studied attainment in students with mental health difficulties who were taking modules by distance learning with the UK Open University in 2012. Students with mental health difficulties who had no additional disabilities were less likely than nondisabled students to complete the modules that they had taken and less likely to pass the modules that they had completed. However, they were just as likely as nondisabled students to obtain good grades for the modules that they had passed when the effects of age, gender, prior qualifications, and financial assistance had been taken into account. Students with mental health difficulties who had additional disabilities were less likely than nondisabled students to complete the modules that they had taken, less likely to pass the modules that they had completed, and less likely to obtain good grades for the modules that they had passed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study compared outcomes in deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) students and nondisabled students taking courses by distance learning with the UK Open University in 2012. DHH students who had no additional disabilities were more likely to complete their courses than were nondisabled students, and they were just as likely to pass the courses that they completed and to obtain good grades on the courses that they passed. DHH students who had additional disabilities were less likely to complete their courses, less likely to pass the courses that they completed and less likely to obtain good grades on the courses that they pass than were nondisabled students. It is concluded that hearing loss itself has no effect on academic attainment, but that additional disabilities may have an impact on DHH students’ academic performance. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In UK higher education, the attainment of ethnic minority students is lower than that of white students, and this remains the case when differences in entry qualifications have been taken into account. The present study investigated whether the under-attainment of ethnic minority students might be due to the nature of the feedback that they received for their assignments. The assignments submitted by 470 ethnic minority and 470 matched white students taking a distance-learning course were compared using a computer system, Open Mentor, to categorise the feedback given by tutors based on a scheme devised by Bales. Asian and black students and students of mixed ethnicity obtained lower marks for their assignments than did the white students. However, there were only small differences between the ethnic minority students and the white students in terms of the pattern of feedback that they received, and these disappeared when the marks that they had received for their assignments had been taken into account. It is concluded that students from all ethnic groups received feedback that was commensurate with their marks, and that the origins of the attainment gap in ethnic minority students in UK higher education must be sought elsewhere. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In managed forests, partial harvest within riparian areas is one way to provide harvest opportunities and maintain some of the functions of riparian vegetation. We examined the response of coniferous seedlings to a 50 %-partial harvest in a second-growth, coniferous riparian forest in the Pacific Northwest. Partial canopy opening facilitated the establishment of Tsuga heterophylla and Thuja plicata, but Pseudotsuga menziesii did not show the same tendency. Results suggested that differences in seedling establishment were related to differences in light. Increased light availability also stimulated growth of Rubus spectabilis, especially in moist sites, and the dense cover precluded establishment of coniferous seedlings. Once R. spectabilis was established, continued stem recruitment maintained a dense stable cover, and even intense disturbance did not affect the stability of the populations. R. spectabilis would be a major competitor to constrain conifer seedlings to regenerate in riparian zones. Although Gaultheria shallon extended their cover, competition from dense G. shallon was not as severe as from R. spectabilis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the UK and other countries, the use of end-of-module assessment by coursework in higher education has increased over the last 40 years. This has been justified by various pedagogical arguments. In addition, students themselves prefer to be assessed either by coursework alone or by a mixture of coursework and examinations than by examinations alone. Assessment by coursework alone or by a mixture of coursework and examinations tends to yield higher marks than assessment by examinations alone. The increased adoption of assessment by coursework has contributed to an increase over time in the marks on individual modules and in the proportion of good degrees across entire programmes. Assessment by coursework appears to attenuate the negative effect of class size on student attainment. The difference between coursework marks and examination marks tends to be greater in some disciplines than others, but it appears to be similar in men and women and in students from different ethnic groups. Collusion, plagiarism and personation (especially ‘contract cheating’ through the use of bespoke essays) are potential problems with coursework assessment. Nevertheless, the increased use of assessment by coursework has generally been seen as uncontentious, with only isolated voices expressing concerns regarding possible risks to academic standards. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In UK higher education, ethnic differences in academic attainment are ubiquitous and have persisted for many years. They are only partly explained by ethnic differences in entry qualifications. They vary from one institution to another and from one subject area to another. This suggests that they result in part from teaching and assessment practices in different institutions and subjects. We do not really know whether ethnic differences in attainment are reflected in variations in the student experience. We do not know what factors are responsible for the ethnic differences in attainment that remain when differences in entry qualifications have been taken into account. Finally, we do not know what aspects of teaching and assessment practices are responsible for variations in the attainment gap. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

During a series of high school English and Drama class trips to the theatre, so many students were online, the entire back row often glowed blue. Although much of the literature suggests that information and communication technologies are benign and neutral, this back-row collision of digital and live culture signals to teachers that technology is freighted with issues of power: questions of identity formation, consumerism, autonomy and freedom. This qualitative study of high school students at the conclusion of their four-play series suggests that cell phones shape the youth audience experience, that etiquette regarding the use of these powerful devices remains sharply contested, and that students apply a range of strategies to dealing with issues of power and agency around their use. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Purpose: To assess the yearly incidence of vitrectomy for proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) over an 11-year period, in a geographically defined part of North East England. The time period covered the introduction of diabetic retinopathy screening. Methods: All patients undergoing vitrectomy for diabetic retinopathy in the Sunderland and South Tyneside area were recorded from 2000 to 2010. Incidence rates of vitrectomy specifically for the complications of PDR for the observed diabetic population, the estimated diabetic population and the population with known PDR were calculated. Results: There was a gradual and significant decline in the vitrectomy rate from 157 (95% confidence interval, CI, 135-187) to 103 (95% CI 98-109) per 100,000 of the observed diabetic population in 2000 and 2010 respectively. The rate in the estimated diabetic population showed no significant change at 68 (95% CI 48-87) in 2002 and 77 (95% CI 55-103) in 2010. The rate in the PDR population, which comprised 2.4% of the known diabetic population in 2002 and 1.8% in 2010, declined significantly from 7.7% in 2002 to 5.7% in 2010. Conclusion: This study evaluated vitrectomy rates for PDR in an area of North East England. There were apparent declining rates of vitrectomy for PDR following the introduction of diabetic retinopathy screening but these have to be interpreted in the light of several confounding factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The impact of disasters on the mental health, well-being and social inclusion of children and young people is well established. However, there is very limited evidence about effective community-based interventions to support positive outcomes. In this paper, we review the empirical and theoretical evidence and propose a conceptual framework to guide longer term community-based interventions, modified from an already developed multidimensional framework for refugee integration. We demonstrate its relevance, with some adjustments, through alignment with the disaster literature, particularly as it relates to children and young people. We also pilot the framework by applying it to an analysis of the services and initiatives delivered to support children and young people following the 2009 Victorian bushfires in Australia. The results suggested a concentration of funding on individually oriented, mental health programmes targeting secondary school-aged students. This may indicate under-resourcing of initiatives for younger children. There also appeared to be very limited inclusion of programmes aiming to re-establish a sense of safety and stability. Despite recognition of the important role of schools in supporting children and young people post-disaster, the analysis of initiatives indicated there was limited external funding support for school-based programmes. There were promising indications of programmes providing opportunities for children and young people to develop citizenship in the post-disaster recovery context, and scope for this to be extended to preparedness and response roles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Achievement goals predict learning in children and young adults, but it is unclear whether they apply to older adults and how they are related to approaches to studying. An online survey examined achievement goals, approaches to studying and academic attainment in distance learners. The Achievement Goals Questionnaire-Revised and the Approaches to Learning and Studying Inventory were given to 2000 students, yielding 1211 responses. The findings confirmed the 2?×?2 model of mastery-approach, mastery-avoidance, performance-approach and performance-avoidance goals in adult distance learners. Mastery goals were positively associated with deep and strategic approaches to studying but negatively associated with a surface approach. Performance goals showed only weak associations with approaches to studying. Performance-approach goals were positively related to attainment, performance-avoidance goals were negatively related to attainment, but mastery goals were unrelated to attainment. The relationship between achievement goals and attainment was partly but not wholly mediated by approaches to studying. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

At UK institutions of higher education, the academic attainment of White students tends to be higher than that of students from other ethnic groups. The present study confirmed this trend in students who were taking courses by distance learning with the UK’s Open University. It was apparent in students of all ages apart from the youngest, and it was largely independent of their gender, academic background and socioeconomic circumstances, or the particular course being taken. Students’ interactions with teachers and other students are attenuated in distance education, and so the results suggest that the explanation for the attainment gap in ethnic minority students must be sought elsewhere than in the nature of their relationships with teachers and other students. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Driver distraction is acknowledged as one of the key contributors to driver accidents (Treat, J.R., et al., 1977. Tri-level study of the causes of traffic accidents (No. DOT-HS-034‐535‐77-TAC(1)). Bloomington, IN: Institute for Research in Public Safety – Indiana University; Knipling, R.R., et al., 1993. Assessment of IVHS countermeasures for collision avoidance: Rear-end crashes (No. DOT HS 807 995). Washington, DC: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration). As driving is mainly considered a visual task (Wierwille, W.W., 1993. Visual and manual demands of in-car controls and displays. In: B. Peakock and W. Karwowski, eds. Automotive ergonomics. London: Taylor and Francis, 229–320) the use of auditory channels for interacting with intelligent vehicle systems has been suggested as a solution to possible visual overload. This article presents two studies which assess the potential impact of distraction caused by verbal interaction on the driving task. The first study used a low-cost, game-based, simulation and the second study used the same experimental design with a generic driving simulation, the Lane Change Task (Mattes, S., 2003. The lane change task as a tool for driver distraction evaluation. In: H. Strasser, H. Rascher, and H. Bubb, eds. Quality of work and products in enterprises of the future. Stuttgart: Ergonomia Verlag, 57–60). Twenty-four young adults, 12 males and 12 females, participated in the first study and 12 young adults, 6 males and 6 females, in the second study. Road departures, time/speed and subjective workload were the measures in the first study, while the second study used mean course-departure and subjective workload as dependent variables. The results indicated that game-based simulation can be a solution when realism is needed but resources are limited, and suggested that concurrent verbal interaction may impair lateral vehicle control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It has been claimed that students from 'Confucian-heritage' cultures approach studying in higher education differently from Western students. This study investigated the experiences and the approaches to studying of students at a university in China. A total of 356 students completed both the Course Experience Questionnaire (CEQ) and the Revised Approaches to Studying Inventory (RASI). Their responses to the CEQ yielded two factors concerned with student support and course demands. Their responses to the RASI yielded two factors: a deep/strategic approach and a surface approach. Students who rated their courses positively in terms of student support were more likely to adopt a deep/strategic approach. Students who rated their courses positively in terms of course demands were less likely to adopt a surface approach. In broad terms, the students' perceptions and approaches to studying were similar to those of Western students, though with some specific differences. The findings add to the literature on Chinese students' approaches to learning and also have practical implications for teachers seeking to promote more desirable forms of studying in their students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There has been a paucity of research on the experiences of students at Pakistani universities. A survey of over 900 students at two universities examined their approaches to studying and perceptions of their courses. Evidence was obtained for a deep approach, a surface approach and two aspects of a strategic approach. Their perceptions were based upon the instructional practices, the acquisition of generic skills, the appropriateness of the assessment and of their workload, and the available learning resources. A higher-order analysis revealed two broad dimensions of the student experience in Pakistan. Students who had positive perceptions tended to adopt a deep approach, to prefer courses, teaching and assessment that supported their understanding and to be engaged and reliable in their studies. However, students who had negative perceptions tended to adopt a surface approach and to prefer courses, teaching and assessment that reinforced this approach through the bare transmission of information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the relationship of developments in medieval confession practices to the emergence of modern selfhood and psychotherapy. While there is great contrast between medieval and modern self-concepts, the emergent focus upon the individual in late medieval confession practices served as fuel for the ideology of modernity. The cultural historian Anthony Low wrote that early confession practices viewed the severity of wrongs done in relation to their hindrance to the maintenance of the believing community. Later, however, the focus shifted from communal maintenance to maintenance of the direct relationship between the individual and the divine. There seems to have been a shift from an emphasis on confession as communal restoration to a more individualized focus on the regulation of “unruly” desires through discourse. This later emphasis upon regulating human impulses through discourse is related to the emergence of psychoanalysis and the “homeostasis” principle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of mental or formal models in most quantitative research is unquestioned and taken for granted, yet reference researchers have focused little attention on identifying the attributes of sound (i.e., good) models for understanding the reference transaction. The goal of this article is to promote the development of better models for understanding reference service. Based on a case study of reference service presented herein, sound models appear to be those that are clear and simple, comprehensive, convincing, insightful, parsimonious, provocative, well structured, testable, and understandable. In addition, this article identifies the spectrum of undesirable attributes—ambiguity, confusion, or needless complication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses various reports published within the issue including one by Alex Wade on the interrelation of different types of space referencing on the work of Henri Lefebvre and another by Elizabeth Stokoe on the organization of conversations as illustrated on the American television program "Friends."

A new optical sensor for Cr(VI) in environmental water samples has been developed. The device is based on uptake of Cr(VI) as [image omitted] at acidic pH into a quaternized poly(4-vinylpyridine) (QPVP) film followed by direct optical detection using attenuated total reflectance (ATR) spectroscopy in a thin-layer flow cell. Cr(VI) uptake is demonstrated to be reversible such that the film can be regenerated for multiple uses over extended periods of time. The sensor was investigated over a pH range of 3-7 and gave a linear response over a Cr(VI) concentration range of 5 µM to 1 mM at pH 4. Analysis of potential interferences demonstrates that the sensor provides excellent discrimination against cationic species, including Cr(III). We also demonstrate a prototype 'field ready' version of the sensor utilizing a 410-nm light-emitting diode source, fixed angles, and prismless construction that is used in conjunction with a rugged miniature spectrometer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent studies have suggested that academic attainment by ethnic minority graduates at UK institutions of higher education is lower than that by White graduates. This was confirmed using a database of all UK-domiciled graduates from UK higher education institutions in 2004-05. The trend was greater in older students than in younger students, in women than in men, in part-time students than in full-time students, and in some subjects and at some institutions than others. It was only partly explained by variations in the students' qualifications on entry into higher education. The available evidence suggests that these quantitative variations in academic attainment are not reflected in concomitant qualitative variations in the experience of higher education among students from different ethnic groups. It is premature to consider widening participation in terms of access to higher education until this is matched by parity in terms of educational outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Because of a series of editorial apologies for neglecting coverage of the civil rights movement, this article examines coverage of the 1963 Birmingham campaign in five prestige dailies to explore the social construction of news and the relationship between news organizations, their subjects, and their audiences. This study considers survey data that indicated regional attitudes toward civil rights and found coverage did not always reflect the views of a paper's readers. Southern newspapers tended to discredit movement leaders and their agenda, as well as to emphasize law enforcement's preparedness, while northern and western papers were sympathetic to the movement. The study specifically considers why a midwest paper was hostile to the movement in contradiction to its readers' pro-integration attitude. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines a range of perspectives and cluster of discourses that are informed by the reading of one single video, "Toxic," performed by pop icon Britney Spears. In our investigation, we seek new directions for audiovisual analysis and attempt to explore the music text alongside symbolic meanings mediated by a video. Of particular interest are the intersection of characters played by the star with constructions of personal narrative, issues of exoticism in music, queering strategies, race and sexuality, audiovisual genealogies, and the relationship of the singing voice to song structure and meaning. We conclude that the musical interpretation of pop videos calls for a mode of analysis that reflects the multivalent and allusive nature of this audiovisual form. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Students in higher education may adopt different approaches to studying, depending upon their perceptions of the academic quality of their courses and programmes, and both are likely to depend upon the nature of the curricula to which they are exposed. Aims: Perceptions of quality and approaches to studying were investigated in students taking pre-registration programmes in a school of health professions. Two of the programmes were 3-year undergraduate programmes with subject-based curricula, and two were 2-year entry-level masters programmes with problem-based curricula. Method: The Course Experience Questionnaire (CEQ) and the Revised Approaches to Studying Inventory (RASI) were administered to the students within a single survey. Their teachers were also surveyed with regard to their beliefs and intentions about teaching. Results: The teachers on the two kinds of programme exhibited similar beliefs and intentions about teaching. However, the students on the masters programmes produced higher ratings than did the students on the undergraduate programmes with regard to the appropriateness of their assessment, the acquisition of generic skills and the emphasis on student independence. The students on the masters programmes were also more likely to show a deep approach to studying and less likely to show a surface approach to studying than were the students on the undergraduate programmes. Conclusions: The CEQ and the RASI provide complementary evidence for use in research, in quality assurance and in quality enhancement. In comparison with subject-based curricula, problem-based curricula seem to enhance students' perceptions of their programmes and the quality of their learning. Practice points Evaluations of academic programmes in the health professions need to take into account students' perceptions of academic quality and the approaches to studying that they adopt. The CEQ and the RASI can be recommended for use as research instruments and together provide complementary evidence for use in quality assurance and quality enhancement. The introduction of problem-based curricula in the health professions can enhance students' perceptions of the quality of their programmes and the quality of their learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This driving simulator study focuses on false and missing alarms produced by a forward collision warning system and estimates the effect of alarm timing on driver response to alarm malfunction from the perspective of driver trust in alarms. The results show that drivers who experience late alarms are reluctant to respond to a false alarm and are not influenced by a missed alarm; however, drivers who experience early alarms tend to respond to a false alarm and suffer a delayed response to critical situations when a missing alarm happens. Furthermore, drivers whose judgement of trust is relatively high, tend to exhibit delayed braking, compared with drivers that have lower levels of trust. Driver behaviour towards false and missed alarms may vary according to alarm timing and its influence on trust in alarms; moreover, impaired system effectiveness caused by alarm malfunction may be mitigated by manipulating alarm timing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Students in the fourth semester of basic training programmes in occupational therapy at seven different institutions of higher education in Denmark were surveyed using the Course Experience Questionnaire [CEQ] and the Revised Approaches to Studying Inventory [RASI]. The CEQ proved to be a reasonably robust in this setting: most of the scales demonstrated satisfactory reliability, and a factor analysis confirmed its intended constituent structure. The CEQ also discriminated among students at the seven institutions in their patterns of scores. The RASI proved to be less satisfactory: many subscales did not demonstrate satisfactory reliability and its intended constituent structure was only partly confirmed by factor analysis. Moreover, the RASI failed to discriminate clearly among students at the seven institutions. The scores on the CEQ produced by students at four of the institutions raised concerns relating to the clarity of academic goals and standards, the teaching performance of staff, and the academic workload imposed on students. Nevertheless, students at five institutions produced relatively high ratings of their general satisfaction with their programmes, and students at all seven schools produced high ratings of the appropriateness of their assessments and the acquisition of generic skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews the research evidence concerning the use of formal instruments to measure students’ evaluations of their teachers, students’ satisfaction with their programmes and students’ perceptions of the quality of their programmes. These questionnaires can provide important evidence for assessing the quality of teaching, for supporting attempts to improve the quality of teaching and for informing prospective students about the quality of course units and programmes. The paper concludes by discussing several issues affecting the practical utility of the instruments that can be used to obtain student feedback. Many students and teachers believe that student feedback is useful and informative, but for a number of reasons many teachers and institutions do not take student feedback sufficiently seriously. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nonylphenol (NP) is a persistent, lipophilic, and toxic chemical that can be endocrine disrupting (estrogenic) at sublethal concentrations. Since amphibian metamorphosis is a hormone-driven process and a delicate balance of hormone levels is required for successful metamorphosis, exposure of larval amphibians to NP might disrupt metamorphic processes. This study tested whether NP exposure influenced rate of metamorphic progression and tail resorption in bullfrog (Rana catesbeiana) tadpoles. Premetamorphic bullfrog tadpoles were exposed for 7 d to one of 3 nominal concentrations of NP (234 µg/L, 468 µg/L, or 936 µg/L) with or without the addition of exogenous 3,3',5-triiodothyronine (T 3 ). In the absence of exogenous T 3 , NP significantly increased the rate of tail growth (as measured by tail length) at 936 µg/L. There was no significant effect of NP alone on tail width, limb development, or the process of cranial transformation. When T 3 was added to the treatments, increasing NP concentrations were associated with a significant decrease in the rate of cranial transformation, and at the highest dose, the rate of tail resorption was significantly lower than in the controls. Overall, NP had an inhibitory effect on the rate of bullfrog tadpole metamorphic progression and tail resorption. The authors thank the Georgia Basin Ecosystem Initiative (GBEI), Toxic Substance Research Initiative (Health Canada and Environment Canada), Pacific Environmental Science Centre, and Dr. Ken Hall. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing on the findings of an extensive study of local and regional newspaper reporting of the 2001 UK general election, this article contests the widely held view that readers' letters' pages provide a public forum for discussion and debate initiated by readers. The article argues that during election campaigns, local parties may become highly influential in shaping the contents of letters pages as part of their broader media based campaigning strategy. For their part, editors select letters not simply according to their newsworthiness but to reflect the identity of the newspaper, to meet the perceived preferences of readers, as well as the more prosaic requirements of availability of space and editorial imperatives concerning balance. A fivefold typology of readers' letters is constructed and illustrated by reference to newspaper discussions of, among other matters, British membership of Europe and issues around taxation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Criticizes the introduction of visual culture studies into arts education in universities and schools in the U.S. Language and de constructionist techniques associated with the New Left that are used by visual culture theorists; Idea of a hierarchy of value in the arts; Problem with introducing art students to real art using popular art; Criticism against visual culture theorists.

An experiment was conducted to illuminate the effects of balanced and imbalanced conflict story structure on perceived story bias and news organization credibility. Participants read mock newspaper stories on capital punishment, flat income tax rate, and drinking age that were systematically manipulated to be balanced or imbalanced, imbalanced stories favored either the pro or the con side on each issue. Participants were randomly assigned to read one story about each issue. Results showed participants perceived imbalanced stories as biased and correctly identified the side favored by the story's imbalance. Participants evaluated newspapers apparently responsible for balanced stories as more credible than newspapers apparently publishing stories imbalanced to favor one side or the other on the issue. Imbalanced story structure directly led to perceived story bias, and perceived story bias in turn led to negative evaluation of the credibility of the newspaper publishing the imbalanced story. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Course Experience Questionnaire (CEQ) and an 'in-house' questionnaire, the Personal and Educational Development Inventory (PEDI), were administered in a postal survey of graduates who had been awarded the first BA/BSc (Hons) named degrees of the Open University and comparison samples of graduates awarded the pre-existing 'unnamed' degrees. The two instruments proved to be highly robust and significantly correlated with each other. The PEDI showed the greater capacity for differentiating amongst the different degrees, which was attributed to intrinsic features of the curriculum in different disciplines. The CEQ showed greater consistency amongst the different degrees, and this was ascribed to the University's uniform 'house style' and system of quality assurance. Conversely, the CEQ showed a somewhat greater capacity than the PEDI for differentiating amongst students who had been awarded different classes of degree. The use of the CEQ and the PEDI can be recommended for monitoring the experiences of students and graduates in both campus-based and distance-learning institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deaf students at two institutions of higher education and hearing students taking the same degree programmes completed the Course Experience Questionnaire and a short version of the Approaches to Studying Inventory. The deaf students were just as likely as the hearing students to adopt a meaning orientation to their studies but were more likely to adopt a reproducing orientation. This was particularly true of those deaf students who preferred to communicate through sign language. However, the deaf students evaluated their programmes just as positively as did the hearing students. It is concluded that deafness per se has no impact on students' perceptions of academic quality, and that deafness and perceptions of academic quality are mutually independent determinants of approaches to studying in higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The synthesis, characterization, and crystal structures of two Ni(II) complexes with N , N -bis[2-(2′-benzimidazolyl)ethyl]amine (bbiea) ( 1 ) and N , N -bis[2-(1′-methyl-2′-benzimidazolyl)ethyl]amine (bmbea) ( 2 ) are reported. The nickel complex Ni(bbiea)(O 2 C 2 H 3 )(ClO 4 ) ( 3 ) crystallizes in the space group C 2/ c , with a = 35.830(7), b = 14.130(3), c = 10.756(2) Å, and β = 103.04(3)°. Compound 4 , Ni(bmbea)(NO 3 ) 2 , crystallizes in the space group P 2 1 / c , with a = 17.024(5), b = 16.516(4), c = 8.692(2) Å, and β = 91.31(2)°. In 3 , the bbiea ligand is coordinated to the Ni(II) ion in a facial conformation, whereas the bmbea ligand in 4 adopts meridonal geometry. Both complexes contain a single benzimidazole chelate and the remaining coordination sites are occupied by solvent molecules and/or counterions. Reactions involving large excesses of ligand-to-metal and different solvents produced only the mono-chelated complexes 3 and 4 . No evidence for formation of bis-chelated complexes with Ni(II) was observed by MALDI-TOF and ESI-mass spectroscopy. Ligand field parameters for 3 and 4 were determined to be 9606 and 9862 cm -1 , respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Students taking courses by distance learning were asked to complete the Academic Engagement Form and the Course Experience Questionnaire. Usable data were obtained from 238 students with a hearing loss and 166 students with no reported disability. Their scores on the two instruments were highly correlated and shared over 80% of their variance. However, they showed different patterns of relationship with background variables (age, faculty, gender, hearing status and prior qualifications) and made distinct contributions to students' ratings of their general satisfaction with their courses. The role of course tutors in supporting academic engagement was crucial to the students' perceptions of the academic quality of their courses, and this relationship mediated the association between the reported attitudes and behaviour of the tutors and the students' general satisfaction with their courses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]