Scientists, trade unions and labour movement policies for science and technology, 1947-1964

This thesis describes the history of the scientific Left beginning with the period of its most extensive influence in the mid-1940s as a movement for the planning of science and ending with the Labour Party's programme of 1964 claiming to harness science and socialism. Its central theme is the external and internal pressures involved in the project to align left-wing politics, trade unions and social responsibility in science. The problematic aspects of this project are examined in the evolution of the Association of Scientific Workers and the World Federation of Scientific Workers as organisations committed to trade union and science policy objectives. This is presented also in the broader context of the Association's attempts to influence the Trade Union Congress's policies for science and technology in a more radical direction. The thesis argues that the shift in the balance of political forces in the labour movement, in the scientific community and in the state brought about by the Cold War was crucial in frustrating these endeavours. This led to alternative, but largely unsuccessful attempts, in the form of the Engels Society and subsequently Science for Peace to create the new expressions of the left-wing politics of science. However, the period 1956-1964 was characterised by intensive interest within the Labour Party in science and technology which reopened informal channels of political influence for the scientific Left. This was not matched by any radical renewal within the Association or the Trade Union Congress and thus took place on a narrower basis and lacked the democratic aspects of the earlier generation of socialist science policy.

Universities Masters World Cup Soccer:integrated sports science research and implementation of an international masters soccer community

Ageing populations with greater wellness and athletic expectations require quality sports and active living experiences in order to increase and sustain participation levels. Responding to the diverse needs and circumstances of Masterslveterans players is a complex and multi-faceted process. While sports science contributions have been very effective at enhancing active living in a variety of youth and adult sports events, very little has been documented regarding their efficacy in events for Masterslveteran players. This paper draws upon action research to examine the growth and development of a unique Masters World Cup 6-0-side Soccer Tournament, involving representative teams from twelve nations. lntegrated sports science concepts and strategies were employed to develop quality soccer experiences. Longitudinal data suggest that fostering a community of practice is critical to the success of Masters soccer programs. In addition to critical leadership contributions, an eclectic range of age-appropriate and responsive soccer experiences are essential to ensure that Masters events meet the diverse needs and circumstances of the players.

Strategies against racism: a comparison of a social movement and case studies of anti-racist policy and practice in the local state

The thesis compares two contrasting strategies employed with the aim of combating particular forms of racism within contemporary Britain. Both are assessed as political strategies in their own right and placed within the broader context of reformist and revolutionary political traditions. The sociology of social movements is examined critically, as are Marxist and post-Marxist writings on the role of human agency within social structures and on the nature of social movements. The history of the Anti Nazi League (ANL) in the late 1970s and its opposition to the National Front is considered as an example of anti-racist social movement based on the Trotskyist model of the United Front. The degree to which the Anti Nazi League corresponded to such a model is analysed as are the potential broader applications for such a strategy. The strategy with which the ANL is compared is the development of anti-racist and equal opportunities policies within local government in the 1980s, primarily by Labour-controlled local authorities. The theory of the local state and the political phenomenon of municipal socialism are discussed, specifically the role of various groups operating in and around local authorities in the formation and implementation of anti-racist policy and practice. Following this general discussion, two case studies in each of the areas of local authority housing, education and employment are explored to consider in depth the problems of specific anti-racist policies. In summation the efficacy of the two strategies are considered as parts of wider political currents in tandem with their declared specific objectives.

Shape of the posterior vitreous chamber in human emmetropia and myopia

PURPOSE - To compare posterior vitreous chamber shape in myopia to that in emmetropia. METHODS - Both eyes of 55 adult subjects were studied, 27 with emmetropia (MSE =-0.55; <+0.75D; mean +0.09 ±0.36D) and 28 with myopia (MSE -5.87 ±2.31D). Cycloplegic refraction was measured with a Shin Nippon autorefractor and anterior chamber depth and axial length with a Zeiss IOLMaster. Posterior vitreous chamber shapes were determined from T2-weighted MRI (3-Tesla) using procedures previously reported by our laboratory. 3-D surface model coordinates were assigned to nasal, temporal, superior and inferior quadrants and plotted in 2-D to illustrate the composite shape of respective quadrants posterior to the second nodal point. Spherical analogues of chamber shape were constructed to compare relative sphericity between refractive groups and quadrants. RESULTS - Differences in shape occurred in the region posterior to points of maximum globe width and were thus in general accord with an equatorial model of myopic expansion. Shape in emmetropia is categorised distinctly as that of an oblate ellipse and in myopia as an oblate ellipse of significantly less degree such that it approximates to a sphere. There was concordance between shape and retinotopic projection of respective quadrants into right, left, superior and inferior visual fields. CONCLUSIONS - The transition in shape from oblate ellipse to sphere with axial elongation supports the hypothesis that myopia may be a consequence of equatorial restriction associated with biomechanical anomalies of the ciliary apparatus. The synchronisation of quadrant shapes with retinotopic projection suggests that binocular growth is coordinated by processes that operate beyond the optic chiasm.

A smart sensing platform for the discrimination of human movement

This thesis documents the design, implementation and testing of a smart sensing platform that is able to discriminate between differences or small changes in a persons walking. The distributive tactile sensing method is used to monitor the deflection of the platform surface using just a small number of sensors and, through the use of neural networks, infer the characteristics of the object in contact with the surface. The thesis first describes the development of a mathematical model which uses a novel method to track the position of a moving load as it passes over the smart sensing surface. Experimental methods are then described for using the platform to track the position of swinging pendulum in three dimensions. It is demonstrated that the method can be extended to that of real-time measurement of balance and sway of a person during quiet standing. Current classification methods are then investigated for use in the classification of different gait patterns, in particular to identify individuals by their unique gait pattern. Based on these observations, a novel algorithm is developed that is able to discriminate between abnormal and affected gait. This algorithm, using the distributive tactile sensing method, was found to have greater accuracy than other methods investigated and was designed to be able to cope with any type of gait variation. The system developed in this thesis has applications in the area of medical diagnostics, either as an initial screening tool for detecting walking disorders or to be able to automatically detect changes in gait over time. The system could also be used as a discrete biometric identification method, for example identifying office workers as they pass over the surface.

Cognitive systems associated with the hippocampus of the human brain and their role in behaviour and neurodegenerative disease

Cognitive systems research involves the synthesis of ideas from natural and artificial systems in the analysis, understanding, and design of all intelligent systems. This chapter discusses the cognitive systems associated with the hippocampus (HC) of the human brain and their possible role in behaviour and neurodegenerative disease. The hippocampus (HC) is concerned with the analysis of highly abstract data derived from all sensory systems but its specific role remains controversial. Hence, there have been three major theories concerning its function, viz., the memory theory, the spatial theory, and the behavioral inhibition theory. The memory theory has its origin in the surgical destruction of the HC, which results in severe anterograde and partial retrograde amnesia. The spatial theory has its origin in the observation that neurons in the HC of animals show activity related to their location within the environment. By contrast, the behavioral inhibition theory suggests that the HC acts as a ‘comparator’, i.e., it compares current sensory events with expected or predicted events. If a set of expectations continues to be verified then no alteration of behavior occurs. If, however, a ‘mismatch’ is detected then the HC intervenes by initiating appropriate action by active inhibition of current motor programs and initiation of new data gathering. Understanding the cognitive systems of the hippocampus in humans may aid in the design of intelligent systems involved in spatial mapping, memory, and decision making. In addition, this information may lead to a greater understanding of the course of clinical dementia in the various neurodegenerative diseases in which there is significant damage to the HC.

Founders' human capital and the performance of UK new technology based firms

This paper investigates the role of entrepreneurs' general and specific human capital on the performance of UK new technology based firms using a resource based approach to the entrepreneurship theory. The effect of entrepreneurial human capital on the performance of NTBFs is investigated using data derived from a survey of 412 firms operating in both high-tech manufacturing and the services sectors. According to the resource based theory it is found that specific human capital is more important for the performance of NTBFs in relation to general. More specifically individual entrepreneurs or entrepreneurial teams with high levels of formal business education, commercial, managerial or same sector experience are found to have created better performing NTBFs. Finally it is found that the performance of a NTBF can improve through the combination of heterogeneous but complementary skills, including, for example, technical education and commercial experience or managerial technical and managerial commercial experience. © 2010 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.