Awareness support in a component-based collaborative environment

The awareness support for activities in collaborative environments is important for effective collaboration and coordination. It helps people know who else is doing what in a shared workspace. The amount of awareness needed varies due to specific roles users undertake during collaboration. While emphasizing the importance of roles, we introduced related research on awareness and a component-based collaboration metamodel. Based on that metamodel, several awareness elements were discussed and implemented in a collaborative environment LiveNet4. Model view controller pattern used to construct the Web-based interface of LiveNet4 was also introduced at the end of this paper.

Slow component of VO2 kinetics: the effect of training status, fibre type, UCP3 mRNA and citrate synthase activity

Examines the relationship between the magnitude of the relative slow component (SC) of pulmonary oxygen uptake VO[sub 2], citrate synthase activity, UCP2 and UCP3 mRNA levels and muscle fiber composition in both endurance-trained and recreationally active subjects. Magnitude of the relative SC of the Tr group; Indicators of aerobic fitness; High negative correlations between the magnitude of the relative SC and citrate synthase activity and VO[sub 2] peak.

Clinical education : a challenging component of undergraduate nursing education

Clinical education is an essential part of every undergraduate nursing curriculum. The main benefits are that it allows students to put theory into practice and experience the realities of the practice- based nursing profession. Limitations include the unstable nature of the clinical area as a learning environment and the challenges this produces with students' assessments. This article reviews the literature and concludes there is room for significant improvement in the area of clinical education and numerous strategies can be implemented to do so.

Effects of a multi-component exercise program and calcium–vitamin-D3-fortified milk on bone mineral density in older men : a randomised controlled trial

Summary We examined the independent and combined effects of a multi-component exercise program and calcium–vitamin-D3-fortified milk on bone mineral density (BMD) in older men. Exercise resulted in a 1.8% net gain in femoral neck BMD, but additional calcium–vitamin D3 did not enhance the response in this group of older well-nourished men.

Introduction This 12-month randomised controlled trial assessed whether calcium–vitamin-D3-fortified milk could enhance the effects of a multi-component exercise program on BMD in older men.

Methods Men (n  = 180) aged 50–79 years were randomised into: (1) exercise + fortified milk; (2) exercise; (3) fortified milk; or (4) controls. Exercise consisted of high intensity progressive resistance training with weight-bearing impact exercise. Men assigned to fortified milk consumed 400 mL/day of low fat milk providing an additional 1,000 mg/day calcium and 800 IU/day vitamin D3. Femoral neck (FN), total hip, lumbar spine and trochanter BMD and body composition (DXA), muscle strength 25-hydroxyvitamin D and parathyroid hormone (PTH) were assessed.

Results There were no exercise-by-fortified milk interactions at any skeletal site. Exercise resulted in a 1.8% net gain in FN BMD relative to no-exercise (p < 0.001); lean mass (0.6 kg, p < 0.05) and muscle strength (20–52%, p < 0.001) also increased in response to exercise. For lumbar spine BMD, there was a net 1.4–1.5% increase in all treatment groups relative to controls (all p < 0.01). There were no main effects of fortified milk at any skeletal site.

Conclusion A multi-component community-based exercise program was effective for increasing FN BMD in older men, but additional calcium–vitamin D3 did not enhance the osteogenic response.

A neural networks learning algorithm for minor component analysis and its convergence analysis

The eigenvector associated with the smallest eigenvalue of the autocorrelation matrix of input signals is called minor component. Minor component analysis (MCA) is a statistical approach for extracting minor component from input signals and has been applied in many fields of signal processing and data analysis. In this letter, we propose a neural networks learning algorithm for estimating adaptively minor component from input signals. Dynamics of the proposed algorithm are analyzed via a deterministic discrete time (DDT) method. Some sufficient conditions are obtained to guarantee convergence of the proposed algorithm.

Knowledge management : the fundamental component for delivery

This paper seeks to examine the link between Knowledge Management (KM) and Quality Management (QM) with a particular focus on the role of a Quality Culture. The authors propose that as Knowledge Management reaches its maturity in terms of acceptance as an important part of doing business in the modern world, that quality will again become the mantra of successful companies. This time, however, quality will not only be defined in terms of the properties of the product and/or services that the organisation provides, but in a more holistic manner that is subject to rapid change and shifting customer preferences. This increasingly dynamic knowledge-driven environment will require companies to pay close adherence to quality in order to satisfy demand and stay ahead of the competition. A national survey of 1000 quality certified organisations in Australia was distributed with a 23% response rate. The survey asked questions pertaining to the organisations' use of Knowledge Management, their quality culture, as well as their quality performance measures. As a result of an analysis of the data, the authors suggest that, in order to survive in such a dynamic environment, organisations will have to embrace Knowledge Management as a fundamental component of delivery of a quality culture.

Building research capacity in General Practice : Incorporating research as a component of GP vocational training

Aims & rationale/Objectives : Australian research shows that most GP registrar supervisors lack confidence to support registrar research projects and themselves have little or no research experience. Assisting registrars to develop critical thinking skills and an understanding of research methods sufficient to enable active use of these tools in general practice is one of the curriculum statements in the RACGP Training Program Curriculum. A University Department of Rural Health (UDRH) and a General Practice Education and Training (GPET) organisation formed a partnership to: Engage basic term registrars in group research and concurrent research skills training program; Improve research skills, confidence, and knowledge; and Contribute research findings relevant to general practice.

Methods : Registrars' initial research knowledge and confidence was measured by a questionnaire. In addition to a final focus group, feedback via evaluation forms was sought from the 11 registrars and two GPET supervisors at the conclusion of each research training session.

Principal findings : Approaches

Implications : Research skills development training and involvement in research can be successfully integrated into a GP vocational training program.

Slow component of VO2 during level and uphill treadmill running : relationship to aerobic fitness in endurance runners

The aim of this study was to compare the oxygen uptake (VO^sub 2^) slow component (SC) during level and uphill running in endurance runners, and to identify associations between the SC and the following aerobic fitness indicators: peak VO^sub 2^, running speed associated with the peak VO^sub 2^ (Vpeak), running speed at the lactic threshold and the VO^sub 2^ fraction elicited at the lactic threshold. Fourteen male endurance-trained runners underwent several 6-min bouts of level (LTR) and 10.5% uphill treadmill running. VO^sub 2^ SC was calculated as the difference between mean VO^sub 2^ during the 6th and the 3rd minutes. The highest mean values for the SC were 181.9±240.2 mL*min^sup -1^ for level running at ~94% peak VO^sub 2^ and 105.4±154.6 mL*min^sup -1^ for uphill running at ~90% peak VO^sub 2^. The SC observed during the last bout of the LTR correlated with peak VO^sub 2^ and with Vpeak (-0.71 and -0.76, P<0.05, respectively). The results show that for endurance-trained runners the magnitude of the SC is not affected by the treadmill gradient and that within a homogeneous sample of endurance-trained runners the SC does not correlate with indicators of aerobic fitness.