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1 – 10 of 282R.A. Aspey, K.J. Brazier and J.W. Spencer
A multi wavelength optical sensing technique has been tested for monitoring a smoke or aerosol polydispersion so as to allow positive discrimination between types of aerosols or…
Abstract
A multi wavelength optical sensing technique has been tested for monitoring a smoke or aerosol polydispersion so as to allow positive discrimination between types of aerosols or particles. It uses a polychromatic LED and spectral analysis in real‐time via the technique of chromatic modulation which allows a three‐parameter description to characterise spectral interactions due to scattering.
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K.J. Brazier, P.C. Russell, G.R. Jones and I. Shankland
A system is described that uses a low‐cost off the shelf camera and computing components, along with software developed at the Centre for Intelligent Monitoring Systems (CIMS), to…
Abstract
A system is described that uses a low‐cost off the shelf camera and computing components, along with software developed at the Centre for Intelligent Monitoring Systems (CIMS), to provide an economical solution to colour matching problems. It is aimed primarily at applications in which small differences between the colours of objects need to be identified. In a prototype system, tests have so far yielded favourable results in comparison with existing quality assurance, which relies on the judgement of a human expert. Colour differences between samples at the limit of human perception are repeatably detected.
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A.G. Deakin, I. Rallis, J. Zhang, J.W. Spencer and G.R. Jones
To introduce chromatic methods and their application to monitoring complex systems.
Abstract
Purpose
To introduce chromatic methods and their application to monitoring complex systems.
Design/methodology/approach
Complexity is introduced and the need for holistic monitoring is suggested. The chromatic methodologies are introduced and their broad‐ranging applicability is illustrated with reference to a number of diverse applications.
Findings
The generic chromatic monitoring technology has much to offer as a way of visualising, understanding, monitoring and controlling complex processes and system behaviour.
Practical implications
The technology is leading to new ways of characterising and evaluating aspects of system behaviour, in a holistic and non‐intrusive manner, that are difficult to measure – e.g. walking behaviour of the elderly, tiredness of drivers.
Originality/value
Draws out the generic basis of the chromatic methodology and how it may be applied to a wide range of complex systems and situations to predict when and where human intervention is required.
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Larrell L. Wilkinson, Jelani Kerr, Temple Smith, Muhammad Salaam, Minnjuan W. Flournoy, Jametta Magwood, Edith Williams and Saundra Glover
African-Americans historically report greater exposure to discrimination and also experience unfavorable outcomes associated with physical health, poverty concentration…
Abstract
Purpose
African-Americans historically report greater exposure to discrimination and also experience unfavorable outcomes associated with physical health, poverty concentration, residential segregation, and poorer education. The effects of discrimination are particularly harmful on mental health as discriminatory experiences contribute significantly to diminished mental health status and psychological distress. African-Americans pursuing graduate education may experience additional stressors, increasing the risk for poorer mental health. The purpose of this paper is to examine the association of psychological health and discrimination experiences among black and white graduate students at a southeastern university.
Design/methodology/approach
Participants were 505 graduate students at a predominantly white southeastern institution. Researchers collected data via self-administered online and paper questionnaires during the spring 2010 semester. Graduate students were asked questions pertaining to individual demographics, discrimination, and psychosocial concerns.
Findings
Approximately 15 percent of the graduate students reported psychological distress. Additionally, black graduate students reported significantly higher levels of day-to-day and lifetime discrimination when compared to white graduate students. In addition to the proportions of psychological distress differing by race, African-American graduate students reported better psychological well-being when exposed to both day-to-day and lifetime discrimination than whites with similar exposure.
Practical implications
Resilience factors and coping strategies should be examined further among African-American graduate students for greater understanding. Moreover, it is important to develop applications to improve mental health outcomes for all graduate students.
Originality/value
This is one of the few studies to focus on the mental health and discrimination experiences among a graduate student population. The sample is drawn from the southeastern USA where there are long vestiges of discrimination and a sizable sampling of African-Americans who live in the USA.
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To most minds libraries exist at the periphery of debates over education and educational reform. However, the purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how, in 1910, the Melbourne…
Abstract
Purpose
To most minds libraries exist at the periphery of debates over education and educational reform. However, the purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how, in 1910, the Melbourne Public Library (now the State Library of Victoria) was central, rather than peripheral, to a conflict which focussed on the role of the library in education and how the library and its collection could best be organised to meet this purpose. It will be argued that libraries and the way they are organised act as indices of the dominant views about education and can be seen as social and educational artefacts. As artefacts they encapsulate community beliefs about how learning could best occur at a given time and what knowledge was esteemed, made available and to whom.
Design/methodology/approach
To illustrate this point of view and illuminate the broader issues, this paper will use a particular set of events and a particular group of protagonists in Australian history as a case study.
Findings
This case study illuminates conflicting ideas about the place of libraries and the organisation of their collections in early twentieth‐century society and demonstrates how these ideas continued to have an impact on the place of libraries in educational reform agendas in Australia in the following decades.
Social implications
The argument reported as “the disaffection in the library” was both philosophical and practical and illuminated ongoing debates surrounding the place of the library in education. The outcome influenced the shape and place of libraries in Australia and demonstrates broader concerns at work in Federation Australia.
Originality/value
The paper casts a new light on the relationship between libraries and education and the place of libraries in the educational process. The network of influence in Federation Australia and the impact of this on the development of institutions and professions in Australia is also examined.
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Praveen Kumar Sharma and Rajeev Kumra
Workplace spirituality is presently a prominent research topic and is gaining recognition and importance among industry professionals and academicians. Workplace spirituality is…
Abstract
Purpose
Workplace spirituality is presently a prominent research topic and is gaining recognition and importance among industry professionals and academicians. Workplace spirituality is defined as a sense of community, meaningful work and organizational values. The purpose of this research paper is to investigate the relationship between workplace spirituality and mental health, wherein employee engagement is considered as a mediator. Furthermore, this study examines the mediating role of employee engagement in the relationship between organizational justice and mental health.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were gathered from 344 information technology professionals working in India. Structural equation modelling was used to evaluate the model fit of workplace spirituality and its relationship to employee engagement, organizational justice and mental health.
Findings
The results revealed that workplace spirituality and organizational justice significantly and positively predict employee engagement, which is significantly related to employee mental health. The results also revealed that employee engagement significantly partially mediates the relationship between workplace spirituality and mental health as well as the relationship between organizational justice and mental health.
Research limitations/implications
Results of research guide HR professionals, employee mental health concerns can be addressed by promoting workplace spirituality, improving employee engagement strategies and implementing organizational justice policies that are perceived to be fair. This study makes a significant contribution to the extant literature regarding mental health issues in the IT sector.
Originality/value
Findings of this research contribute to the area of human resource management and employee engagement. The current study fills a gap in the extant literature by investigating employee engagement intervening mechanism between organizational justice, workplace spirituality and mental health.
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Increasing attention is being placed on clinical trials as a source of evidence. Presents thoughts about the advantages and disadvantages of clinical trials and their influence on…
Abstract
Increasing attention is being placed on clinical trials as a source of evidence. Presents thoughts about the advantages and disadvantages of clinical trials and their influence on thinking and clinical practice.
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