Using fractal geometry to make rapid field measurements of riverbed topography at ecologically useful spatial scales

A method is described for making rapid in situ field measurements of riverbed topography over spatial scales of ≅1–10 m. This method uses rolling balls to make quick, accurate measurements of river-bed roughness at several spatial scales. Random sampling and replication generate multiple estimates of the fractal dimension (d) that can be used to test for significant differences in the complexity of riverbed architecture between habitat types and spatial scales.

Plato's legacy : How to do philosophy

Although it has its origins earlier, philosophy as we know it in the West took its shape from the Socrates of Plato's Dialogues. It is not implausible to regard the Dialogues as heuristic devices designed for engaging in philosophical inquiry. As such, they would model the process of philosophical inquiry as well as illustrate the common pitfalls or errors to avoid when engaging in such inquiry. So it will not be surprising to see Socrates, the character of the Dialogues, modeling questionable, even poor, inquiry techniques as well as good; admonishing other characters for poor technique and reminding them of lessons they should have learned earlier in their tuition. Plato presumably would expect students reading and role-playing a Dialogue to recognise when and where such instances occur. It is instructive then to take a close look at one of the longer dialogues featuring Socrates engaging in such inquiry, not with an untutored interlocutor, but with a professional, the sophist Protagoras, in order to identify the features of the inquiry itself. For this will reveal something of what Plato conceived to be the activity of philosophy to which we are the heirs. The Protagoras can be read as an illustration (not a definition) of how to do philosophy. And to aid this reading, I propose to focus on the logical form of the inquiry, the moves made by the characters and the techniques displayed, rather than the adequacy of the substantive arguments they mount.

How to build aggregation operators from data

This article discusses a range of regression techniques specifically tailored to building aggregation operators from empirical data. These techniques identify optimal parameters of aggregation operators from various classes (triangular norms, uninorms, copulas, ordered weighted aggregation (OWA), generalized means, and compensatory and general aggregation operators), while allowing one to preserve specific properties such as commutativity or associativity. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Consumers' readiness to eat a plant-based diet

Objective: The aim of this study was to examine consumers' readiness to change to a plant-based diet. Design: Mail survey that included questions on readiness to change, eating habits and perceived benefits and barriers to the consumption of a plant-based diet. Setting: Victoria, Australia. Subjects: A total of 415 randomly selected adults. Results: In terms of their readiness to eat a plant-based diet, the majority (58%) of participants were in the precontemplation stage of change, while 14% were in contemplation/preparation, and 28% in action/maintenance. Those in the action/maintenance stage ate more fruit, vegetables, nuts, seeds, whole-meal bread, and cooked cereals than those in earlier stages. There were statistically significant differences in age and vegetarian status between the stages of change, but not for other demographic variables. There were strong differences across the stages of change with regard to perceived benefits and barriers to plant-based diets. For example, those in action/maintenance scored highest for benefit factors associated with well-being, weight, health, convenience and finances, whereas those in the precontemplation stage did not recognise such benefits. Conclusions: These findings can be utilised to help provide appropriate nutrition education and advertising, targeted at specific stages of change. For example, education about how it is possible to obtain iron and protein from a plant-based diet and on the benefits of change, in addition to tips on how to make a gradual, easy transition to a plant-based diet, could help progress precontemplators to later stages.

Do clinicians know how to use pulse oximetry? A literature review and clinical implications

Pulse oximerry has become one of the most commonly used tools in the clinical environment for assessing patients' oxygenation status. It is employed almost continuously in critical care areas and frequently in the general ward environment. Although it is a much better tool for determining hypoxia than the human eye, its use is limited if clinicians do not understand relevant physiological principles, such as the oxyhaemoglobin dissociation curve and the inherent limitations of the device. Furthermore, the risk for compromised patient safety is significant if clinicians fail to recognise the potential for false or erroneous readings. This paper explores the research which has examined clinicians' comprehension of pulse oximetry. Fourteen studies examining clinicians' knowledge of pulse oximerry were reviewed. These studies revealed significant knowledge deficits about pulse oximerry amongst nurses, doctors and allied health professionals, all of whom used this technology frequently. Alarmingly, those lacking an adequate understanding of pulse oximerry included senior, experienced clinicians. The studies were limited by their use of convenience sampling and small sample sizes. Further research is needed to better understand the significance of this problem and to examine how principles of pulse oximerry are taught to nurses and other health professionals at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Educators and clinicians alike must ensure that a safe level of knowledge for the use of pulse oximerry is maintained in order to ensure that patient outcomes are not compromised.

Using an IDMI methodology to make multi-criteria decisions

Multi-criteria decisions usually require measurement or evaluation of performance in different units and their mix by application of weighting factors. This approach leads to potential manipulation of the results as a direct consequence of the applied weightings. In this paper a mechanism has been proposed to overcome this problem. It is known as the : Interlink Decision Making Index (IDMI) and has all the desired features: simple, interlink (all criteria) and automatically and quantified influence of critical criteria (i.e. no human weighting needed). The IDMI is capable of reflecting the total merits of a particular option once the normal decision making criteria and (up to two) critical criteria (CC) have been chosen. Then, without arbitrarily weighting criteria, comparison and selection of the best possible option can be made. Simple software has been developed to do this numerical transfer and graphic presentation. Two hypothetical examples are presented in the paper to demonstrate the application of the IDMI concept and its advantages over the traditional "tabular and weighting method" in the decision making process.

Time to make a difference: using action research to foster student engagement

This paper reports on a project, funded by the Victorian Department of Education and Training (Australia), undertaken to explore the capacity for teachers to develop innovative teaching and learning strategies aimed at improving the educational experiences of students in the middle years. Central to this charter was the need for local schools to form Clusters, share ideas and develop strategies designed to improve student engagement and connection. In forming the Buxton (pseudonym) Cluster, four schools came together to declare their shared interest in improving student connection through the teaching and learning of mathematics. The 22 teachers involved in the project shared a broad concern that the traditional pedagogies built up around the maths discipline were contributing to the wider level of student disconnection observed in the middle years. In thinking about change, the group were attracted to constructivist approaches to pedagogy in which learning opportunities and tasks are varied sufficiently to appeal to the various learning styles and aptitudes of learners. Favouring an action research framework teachers involved in the project embarked on the implementation of pedagogic reforms aimed at improving levels of student engagement.

How to start the first tutorial

This guide has been written for people who are new to tutoring in the Faculty of Economics and Commerce at the University of Melbourne. It is one of a number of teaching and related guides provided by the Teaching and Learning Unit (TLU).
The guide is intended to be a useful source of ideas and advice for good tutoring practice, based on sound educational principles and research.

Roman concept of mental capacity to make end-of-life decisions

When assessing decisional competence of patients, psychiatrists have to balance the patients' right to personal autonomy, their condition and wishes against principles of medical ethics and professional discretion. This article explores the age-old legal and ethical dilemmas posed by refusal of vital medical treatment by patients and their mental capacity to make end-of-life decisions against the background of philosophical, legal and medical approaches to these issues in the time of the Younger Pliny (c62–c113 CE). Classical Roman discourse regarding mental competency and "voluntary death" formed an important theme of the vast corpus of Greco-Roman writings, which was moulded not only by legal permissibility of suicide but also by philosophical (in modern terms, moral or ethical) considerations. Indeed, the legal and ethical issues of evaluating the acceptability of end of life decisions discussed in the Letters are as pertinent today as they were 2000 years ago. We may gain valuable insights about our own methodologies and frames of reference in this area of the law and psychiatry by examining Classical Roman approaches to evaluating acceptability of death-choices as described in Pliny's Letters and the writings of some of his peers.

How to review a mathematics textbook

This article provides guidelines for maths primary teachers on how to review a mathematics textbook or curriculum system.

Fixed and floating charges : the latest conflicting law and how to address the gaps

Can book debts be subject to a fixed charge? This question was considered by the House of Lords in National Westminster Bank v. Spectrum Plus Limited [2005] UKHL 41 where the full House was against the idea of a fixed charge on book debts and insisted that only a floating charge had been created. The law in this area is still vague and uncertain in Australia. This paper argues that the financiers and the companies should be given the freedom to decide how they wish to structure their charge documents. The paper sets out to argue that, in respect to the use of book debts as security for a loan, the only way for both the financiers and the companies to do business is to create a sustained workable fixed charge or even multiple fixed and floating charge on book debts. The author explains how this could be possible and how the proposed model would not deny the statutory priority rights of the preferential creditors.