Attitudes and expectations of technologies to manage high risk wandering and elopement in persons with dementia : an Australian perspective

Wandering is aimless and repetitive locomotion that may expose persons with dementia (PWD) to elopement, getting lost and death. This study is an Australian replication of a US study. Cross-disciplinary consensus- based analysis was applied to data from five focus groups (N =47: cognitively intact LTC residents (5), carers of PWD (11), home care workers (13) allied health professionals and health-focused engineers (7) and RNs (11). Groups received briefing about wandering monitoring and elopement management systems. Consistent with US attitudes, participants in all groups agreed on what a wandering technology should do, how it should do it, and necessary technical specifications. Within each group participants raised the need for a continuum of care for PWD and the imperative for early recognition of potentially dangerous wandering and getting lost when they occur. Global Positioning System elopement management was the preferred option. Interestingly, the prospective value of GPS to recover a lost or eloped wanderer far outweighed privacy concerns, as in the US. A pervasive theme was that technologies need to augment, but cannot replace, attentive, compassionate caregiver presence. A significant theme raised only by Australian carers of PWD was the potential for development of implantable GPS technologies and the need for public debate about attendant ethical issues. Given that 60% or more of over 200,000 Australians and 4.5 million Americans with dementia will develop wandering, there is a pressing need to develop effective locator systems that may delay institutionalization, help allay carer concern and enhance PWD safety.

Power of engineering : changing the perceptions of year 9 and 10 female school students towards an engineering career

BACKGROUND The engineering profession in Australia has failed to attract young women for the last decade or so despite all the effort that have gone into promoting engineering as a preferred career choice for girls. It is a missed opportunity for the profession to flourish as a heterogeneous team. Many traditional initiatives and programs have failed to make much impact or at best incremental improvement into attracting and retaining more women in the profession. The reasons why girls and young women in most parts of the world show little interest in engineering haven't changed, despite all the efforts to address them, the issue proposed here in this paper is with the perceptions of engineering in the community and the confidence to pursue it. This gender imbalance is detrimental for the engineering profession, and hence an action-based intervention strategy was devised by the Women in Engineering Qld Chapter of Engineers Australia in 2012 to change the perceptions of school girls by redesigning the engagement strategy and key messages. As a result, the “Power of Engineering Inc” (PoE) was established as a not-for-profit organisation, and is a collaborative effort between government, schools, universities, and industry. This paper examines a case study in changing the perceptions of year 9 and 10 school girls towards an engineering career. PURPOSE To evaluate and determine the effectiveness of an intervention in changing the perceptions of year 9 and 10 school girls about engineering career options, but specifically, “What were their perceptions of engineering before today and have those perceptions changed?” DESIGN/METHOD The inaugural Power of Engineering (PoE) event was held on International Women’s Day, Thursday 8 March 2012 and was attended by 131 high school female students (year 9 and 10) and their teachers. The key message of the day was “engineering gives you the power to change the world”. A questionnaire was conducted with the participating high school female students, collecting both quantitative and qualitative data. The survey instrument has not been validated. RESULTS The key to the success of the event was as a result of collaboration between all participants involved and the connection created between government, schools, universities and industry. Of the returned surveys (109 of 131), 91% of girls would now consider a career in engineering and 57% who had not considered engineering before the day would now consider a career in engineering. Data collected found significant numbers of negative and varying perceptions about engineering careers prior to the intervention. CONCLUSIONS The evidence in this research suggests that the intervention assisted in changing the perceptions of year 9 and 10 female school students towards engineering as a career option. Whether this intervention translates into actual career selection and study enrolment is to be determined. In saying this, the evidence suggests that there is a critical and urgent need for earlier interventions prior to students selecting their subjects for year 11 and 12. This intervention could also play its part in increasing the overall pool of students engaged in STEM education.

Narratives of the 'everyday' in Rio de Janeiro's favelas : community photographers' attempts at generating alternative news values [Narrativas do cotidiano nas favelas do Rio de Janeiro: tentativas de construção de valores-notícia alternativos pelos fotógrafos populares]

Abstract This paper presents the partial results of an ongoing research project which investigates ethnographically community (photo)journalism media initiatives, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The Viva Rio and Observatorio de Favelas (NGOs) run projects that provide favela residents with skills to take, edit and print their own (photo) journalism contents that enables community-based framing and documentation of favela live, personalities and issues. Three months of fieldwork related to these projects in Rio's favelas generated remarkable theoretical issues that represent the community photographers' attempt to establish counter news values by shifting the focus from poverty, shortages, violence and criminality to images of the ordinary life which included the myriad events that occurs in the day of the favelas. Resumo Este artigo apresenta os resultados parciais de uma pesquisa em andamento que, a partir do método etnográfico, investiga os projetos de comunicação comunitária, jornalismo e fotojornalismo, no Rio de Janeiro, Brasil. As organizações não-governamentais (ONGs) Viva Rio e Observatório de Favela apoiam projetos que objetivam tornar moradores de favelas capazes de produzir, editar e publicar as suas próprias narrativas sobre personagens e questões do cotidiano de suas comunidades. O trabalho de campo sobre estes projetos, realizado durante três meses nas favelas do Rio de Janeiro, forneceu questões teóricas relevantes que representam o esforço dos fotógrafos populares para estabelecer contra valores-notícia transferindo o foco da pobreza, escassez, violência e criminalidade para imagens do cotidiano que inclui uma miríade de eventos que acontecem no dia-a-dia das favelas.

Influence of Rainfall and Catchment Characteristics on Urban Stormwater Quality

The accuracy and reliability of urban stormwater quality modelling outcomes are important for stormwater management decision making. The commonly adopted approach where only a limited number of factors are used to predict urban stormwater quality may not adequately represent the complexity of the quality response to a rainfall event or site-to-site differences to support efficient treatment design. This paper discusses an investigation into the influence of rainfall and catchment characteristics on urban stormwater quality in order to investigate the potential areas for errors in current stormwater quality modelling practices. It was found that the influence of rainfall characteristics on pollutant wash-off is step-wise based on specific thresholds. This means that a modelling approach where the wash-off process is predicted as a continuous function of rainfall intensity and duration is not appropriate. Additionally, other than conventional catchment characteristics, namely, land use and impervious surface fraction, other catchment characteristics such as impervious area layout, urban form and site specific characteristics have an important influence on both, pollutant build-up and wash-off processes. Finally, the use of solids as a surrogate to estimate other pollutant species was found to be inappropriate. Individually considering build-up and wash-off processes for each pollutant species should be the preferred option.

Cloning of a novel insulin-regulated ghrelin transcript in prostate cancer

Ghrelin is a multifunctional hormone, with roles in stimulating appetite and regulating energy balance, insulin secretion and glucose homeostasis. The ghrelin gene locus (GHRL) is highly complex and gives rise to a range of novel transcripts derived from alternative first exons and internally spliced exons. The wild-type transcript encodes a 117 amino acid preprohormone that is processed to yield the 28 amino acid peptide ghrelin. Here, we identified insulin-responsive transcription corresponding to cryptic exons in intron 2 of the human ghrelin gene. A transcript, termed in2c-ghrelin (intron 2-cryptic), was cloned from the testis and the LNCaP prostate cancer cell line. This transcript may encode an 83 AA preproghrelin isoform that codes for the ghrelin, but not obestatin. It is expressed in a limited number of normal tissues and in tumours of the prostate, testis, breast and ovary. Finally, we confirmed that in2c-ghrelin transcript expression, as well as the recently described in1-ghrelin transcript, is significantly upregulated by insulin in cultured prostate cancer cells. Metabolic syndrome and hyperinsulinaemia has been associated with prostate cancer risk and progression. This may be particularly significant after androgen deprivation therapy for prostate cancer, which induces hyperinsulinaemia, and this could contribute to castrate resistant prostate cancer growth. We have previously demonstrated that ghrelin stimulates prostate cancer cell line proliferation in vitro. This study is the first description of insulin regulation of a ghrelin transcript in cancer, and should provide further impetus for studies into the expression, regulation and function of ghrelin gene products.

Public, private, or hybrid? What the upstream oil and gas industry can learn from other sectors about ‘the cloud’

Despite the compelling case for moving towards cloud computing, the upstream oil & gas industry faces several technical challenges—most notably, a pronounced emphasis on data security, a reliance on extremely large data sets, and significant legacy investments in information technology (IT) infrastructure—that make a full migration to the public cloud difficult at present. Private and hybrid cloud solutions have consequently emerged within the industry to yield as much benefit from cloud-based technologies as possible while working within these constraints. This paper argues, however, that the move to private and hybrid clouds will very likely prove only to be a temporary stepping stone in the industry’s technological evolution. By presenting evidence from other market sectors that have faced similar challenges in their journey to the cloud, we propose that enabling technologies and conditions will probably fall into place in a way that makes the public cloud a far more attractive option for the upstream oil & gas industry in the years ahead. The paper concludes with a discussion about the implications of this projected shift towards the public cloud, and calls for more of the industry’s services to be offered through cloud-based “apps.”

Intraurban rail access : Policy implications of five revealed perspectives from a Q-sorting exercise in three Australian cities

This project advances current understanding of intra-urban rail passengers and their travel experiences in order to help rail industry leaders tailor policy approaches to fit specific, relevant segments of their target population. Using a Q sorting technique and cluster analysis, our preliminary research identified five perspectives occurring in a small sample of rail passengers, who varied in their frequency and location of rail travel as well as certain socio-demographic characteristics. Revealed perspectives (named to capture the gist of their content) included: ‘Rail Travel is About the Destination, Not the Journey’; ‘Despite Challenges, Public Transport is Still the Best Option’; ‘Rail Travel is Fine’; ‘Rail Travel? So Far, So Good’; and ‘Bad Taste for Rail Travel’. This paper discusses each of the perspectives in detail, and considers them in terms of tailored policy implications. An overarching finding from this study is that improving railway travel ‘access’ requires attention to physical, psychological, financial, and social facets of accessibility. For example, designing waiting areas to be more socially functional and comfortable has the potential to increase ridership by addressing social forms of access, decreasing perceived wait times, and making time at the station feel like time well spent. Even at this preliminary stage, the Q sorting technique promises to provide a valuable, holistic albeit fine-grained analysis of passenger attitudes and experiences that will assist industry efforts to increase ridership.

Lynch syndrome-associated breast cancers: clinicopathologic characteristics of a case series from the colon cancer family registry

Purpose: The recognition of breast cancer as a spectrum tumor in Lynch syndrome remains controversial. The aim of this study was to explore features of breast cancers arising in Lynch syndrome families. Experimental Design: This observational study involved 107 cases of breast cancer identified from the Colorectal Cancer Family Registry (Colon CFR) from 90 families in which (a) both breast and colon cancer co-occurred, (b) families met either modified Amsterdam criteria, or had at least one early-onset (<50 years) colorectal cancer, and (c) breast tissue was available within the biospecimen repository for mismatch repair (MMR) testing. Eligibility criteria for enrollment in the Colon CFR are available online. Breast cancers were reviewed by one pathologist. Tumor sections were stained for MLH1, PMS2, MSH2, and MSH6, and underwent microsatellite instability testing. Results: Breast cancer arose in 35 mutation carriers, and of these, 18 (51%) showed immunohistochemical absence of MMR protein corresponding to the MMR gene mutation segregating the family. MMR-deficient breast cancers were more likely to be poorly differentiated (P = 0.005) with a high mitotic index (P = 0.002), steroid hormone receptor–negative (estrogen receptor, P = 0.031; progesterone receptor, P = 0.022), and to have peritumoral lymphocytes (P = 0.015), confluent necrosis (P = 0.002), and growth in solid sheets (P < 0.001) similar to their colorectal counterparts. No difference in age of onset was noted between the MMR-deficient and MMR-intact groups. Conclusions: MMR deficiency was identified in 51% of breast cancers arising in known mutation carriers. Breast cancer therefore may represent a valid tissue option for the detection of MMR deficiency in which spectrum tumors are lacking

Antigenic specificity of a monovalent versus polyvalent MOMP based Chlamydia pecorum vaccine in koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus)

Chlamydia continues to be a major pathogen of koalas. The bacterium is associated with ocular, respiratory and urogenital tract infections and a vaccine is considered the best option to limit the decline of mainland koala populations. Over the last 20 years, efforts to develop a chlamydial vaccine in humans have focussed on the use of the chlamydial major outer membrane protein (MOMP). Potential problems with the use of MOMP-based vaccines relate to the wide range of genetic diversity in its four variable domains. In the present study, we evaluated the immune response of koalas vaccinated with a MOMP-based C. pecorum vaccine formulated with genetically and serologically diverse MOMPs. Animals immunised with individual MOMPs developed strong antibody and lymphocyte proliferation responses to both homologous as well as heterologous MOMP proteins. Importantly, we also showed that vaccine induced antibodies which effectively neutralised various heterologous strains of koala C. pecorum in an in vitro assay. Finally, we also demonstrated that the immune responses in monovalent as well as polyvalent MOMP vaccine groups were able to recognise whole chlamydial elementary bodies, illustrating the feasibility of developing an effective MOMP based C. pecorum vaccine that could protect against a range of strains.

The complementary potential of multimedia and science demonstrations

Science is often considered as one of the cornerstones of human advancement. Despite its importance in our society, science as a subject in schools appears to be losing ground. Lack of relevance, the nature of the curriculum and the pedagogical approach to teaching are some of the reasons which researchers believe are causing a “swing” away from science. This paper will argue for the effectiveness of simple science demonstrations as a feasible pedagogical option with a high task value and which has the potential to reengage and reinvigorate student interest in the subject. This paper describes a case study (N = 25) in which the Integrative problem based learning model for science was implemented in a year nine science class. The study was conducted at a secondary school in Australia. Teacher demonstrations were situated in classroom activities in a “Why is it so?” problem/question format. Qualitative data gathered from students demonstrated a number of benefits of this approach. This paper then explores ways in which Web 2.0 technologies could be incorporated to enhance the value of science demonstrations

FOXC2 expression links epithelial-mesenchymal transition and stem cell properties in breast cancer

Resistance to chemotherapy and metastases are the major causes of breast cancer-related mortality. Moreover, cancer stem cells (CSC) play critical roles in cancer progression and treatment resistance. Previously, it was found that CSC-like cells can be generated by aberrant activation of epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT), thereby making anti-EMT strategies a novel therapeutic option for treatment of aggressive breast cancers. Here, we report that the transcription factor FOXC2 induced in response to multiple EMT signaling pathways as well as elevated in stem cell-enriched factions is a critical determinant of mesenchymal and stem cell properties, in cells induced to undergo EMT- and CSC-enriched breast cancer cell lines. More specifically, attenuation of FOXC2 expression using lentiviral short hairpin RNA led to inhibition of the mesenchymal phenotype and associated invasive and stem cell properties, which included reduced mammosphere-forming ability and tumor initiation. Whereas, overexpression of FOXC2 was sufficient to induce CSC properties and spontaneous metastasis in transformed human mammary epithelial cells. Furthermore, a FOXC2-induced gene expression signature was enriched in the claudin-low/basal B breast tumor subtype that contains EMT and CSC features. Having identified PDGFR-β to be regulated by FOXC2, we show that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved PDGFR inhibitor, sunitinib, targets FOXC2-expressing tumor cells leading to reduced CSC and metastatic properties. Thus, FOXC2 or its associated gene expression program may provide an effective target for anti-EMT-based therapies for the treatment of claudin-low/basal B breast tumors or other EMT-/CSC-enriched tumors.

Creativity is as important as literacy : making a film trailer responding to literature

The first part of the title is from Sir Ken Robinson (Robinson, 2009), the esteemed educator and champion of creativity in schools. Sometimes in the face of meeting the demands of time, timetabling, demanding administration tasks and teaching for high stakes testing accountability, we can find ourselves desperate for time to remember that English has always been one of the places in schools where creativity can flourish. English is a place for the play of the imagination. English teachers are the purveyors of narrative; the keepers and teachers of stories. The new Australian Curriculum: English, (Australian Curriculum and Assessment Reporting Authority (ACARA), 2012) asks us to be using ICT technologies in creative ways to tell those stories. The curriculum asks students to access texts receptively and to then speak about, write and create texts productively. There are so many interesting things to do with texts beyond word processing of print based resources. Responding to literature through media is always an alternative option to writing or simply speaking about it. In this paper my QUT pre-service student Chrystal Armitage describes how she made a mini story via a film trailer in response to a short story, ‘Turned’ (Gilman, 1987) in the unit, Literature in Secondary Teaching.

Exploring the effect of companion robots on emotional expression in older people with dementia : a pilot randomized controlled trial

This pilot study aimed to compare the effect of companion robots (PARO) to participation in an interactive reading group on emotions in people living with moderate to severe dementia in a residential care setting. A randomized crossover design, with PARO and reading control groups, was used. Eighteen residents with mid- to late-stage dementia from one aged care facility in Queensland, Australia, were recruited. Participants were assessed three times using the Quality of Life in Alzheimer’s Disease, Rating Anxiety in Dementia, Apathy Evaluation, Geriatric Depression, and Revised Algase Wandering Scales. PARO had a moderate to large positive influence on participants’ quality of life compared to the reading group. The PARO intervention group had higher pleasure scores when compared to the reading group. Findings suggest PARO may be useful as a treatment option for people with dementia; however, the need for a larger trial was identified.

Cloud computing in the upstream oil & gas industry : a proposed way forward

Despite the compelling case for moving towards cloud computing, the upstream oil & gas industry faces several technical challenges—most notably, a pronounced emphasis on data security, a reliance on extremely large data sets, and significant legacy investments in information technology infrastructure—that make a full migration to the public cloud difficult at present. Private and hybrid cloud solutions have consequently emerged within the industry to yield as much benefit from cloud-based technologies as possible while working within these constraints. This paper argues, however, that the move to private and hybrid clouds will very likely prove only to be a temporary stepping stone in the industry's technological evolution. By presenting evidence from other market sectors that have faced similar challenges in their journey to the cloud, we propose that enabling technologies and conditions will probably fall into place in a way that makes the public cloud a far more attractive option for the upstream oil & gas industry in the years ahead. The paper concludes with a discussion about the implications of this projected shift towards the public cloud, and calls for more of the industry's services to be offered through cloud-based “apps.”

Identity theft, computers and behavioral biometrics

The increase of online services, such as eBanks, WebMails, in which users are verified by a username and password, is increasingly exploited by Identity Theft procedures. Identity Theft is a fraud, in which someone pretends to be someone else is order to steal money or get other benefits. To overcome the problem of Identity Theft an additional security layer is required. Within the last decades the option of verifying users based on their keystroke dynamics was proposed during login verification. Thus, the imposter has to be able to type in a similar way to the real user in addition to having the username and password. However, verifying users upon login is not enough, since a logged station/mobile is vulnerable for imposters when the user leaves her machine. Thus, verifying users continuously based on their activities is required. Within the last decade there is a growing interest and use of biometrics tools, however, these are often costly and require additional hardware. Behavioral biometrics, in which users are verified, based on their keyboard and mouse activities, present potentially a good solution. In this paper we discuss the problem of Identity Theft and propose behavioral biometrics as a solution. We survey existing studies and list the challenges and propose solutions.