An approach to the general synthesis of a threshold element network.

Vita.

The concept in Thomism.

Mode of access: Internet.

Teachers’ perception of the concept of intercultural competence in teaching English

Intercultural competence (IC) as an essential part of conceptualization of the cultural dimension in FLT has been promoted by educationalists as the most preferred type of competence. One of the challenges of incorporating IC into FLT is to move from the recognition of IC as a model of teaching (Byram, Nichols and Stevens, 2001) to the development of practical applications. This can be due to the fact that teachers do not have sufficient knowledge of the theory behind the concept and consequently, have difficulties to implement the curriculum requirements with regards to IC into their teaching. The purpose of this study was to investigate how teachers of English in upper secondary schools in Sweden interpret the concept of IC and, accordingly, what is their view of culture in English language teaching. In order to answer the research question, I used an exploratory investigation by adopting a qualitative research method in form of semi-structured interviews. The results are similar to the previous studies (Lundgren, 2002; Larzén, 2005) and suggest that teachers lack theoretical background and central guidance with regards to IC and do not always integrate language and culture into an intercultural model of the English language pedagogy.

Martensite Crystallography - the apparent controversy between the infinitesimal deformation approach and the phenomenological theory of martensitic transformations

The aim of this article is to demonstrate that the apparent controversy between the infinitesimal deformation (ID) approach and the phenomenological theory of martensitic transformations (PTMTs) in predicting the crystallographic characteristics of a martensitic transformation is entirely based on unjustified approximations associated with the way in which the ID calculations are performed. When applied correctly, the ID approach is shown to be absolutely identical to the PTMT. Nevertheless, there may be some advantages in using the ID approach. In particular, it is somewhat simpler than the PTMT; it is based on a physical concept that is easier to understand and, most important, it may provide a tool for investigating some of the features of martensitic transformations that have eluded explanation via the PTMT.

Tractable molecular theory of transport of Lennard-Jones fluids in nanopores

We present here a tractable theory of transport of simple fluids in cylindrical nanopores, which is applicable over a wide range of densities and pore sizes. In the Henry law low-density region the theory considers the trajectories of molecules oscillating between diffuse wall collisions, while at higher densities beyond this region the contribution from viscous flow becomes significant and is included through our recent approach utilizing a local average density model. The model is validated by means of equilibrium as well nonequilibrium molecular dynamics simulations of supercritical methane transport in cylindrical silica pores over a wide range of temperature, density, and pore size. The model for the Henry law region is exact and found to yield an excellent match with simulations at all conditions, including the single-file region of very small pore size where it is shown to provide the density-independent collective transport coefficient. It is also shown that in the absence of dispersive interactions the model reduces to the classical Knudsen result, but in the presence of such interactions the latter model drastically overpredicts the transport coefficient. For larger micropores beyond the single-file region the transport coefficient is reduced at high density because of intermolecular interactions and hindrance to particle crossings leading to a large decrease in surface slip that is not well represented by the model. However, for mesopores the transport coefficient increases monotonically with density, over the range studied, and is very well predicted by the theory, though at very high density the contribution from surface slip is slightly overpredicted. It is also seen that the concept of activated diffusion, commonly associated with diffusion in small pores, is fundamentally invalid for smooth pores, and the apparent activation energy is not simply related to the minimum pore potential or the adsorption energy as generally assumed. (C) 2004 American Institute of Physics.

Modeling nitrogen adsorption in spherical pores of siliceous materials by density functional theory

Adsorption of nitrogen in spherical pores of FDU-1 silica at 77 K is considered by means of a nonlocal density functional theory (NLDFT) accounting for a disordered structure of pore walls. Pore size distribution analysis of various FDU-1 samples subject to different temperatures of calcination revealed three distinct groups of pores. The principal group of pores is identified as ordered spherical mesopores connected with each other by smaller interconnecting pores and irregular micropores present in the mesopore walls. To account for the entrances (connecting pores) into spherical mesopores, a concept of solid mass distribution with respect to the apparent density was introduced. It is shown that the introduction of the aforementioned distribution was sufficient to quantitatively describe experimental adsorption isotherms over the entire range of relative pressures spanning six decades.

The relationship of adult attachment to emotion, catastrophizing, control, threshold and tolerance, in experimentally-induced pain

Although insecure attachment has been associated with a range of variables linked with problematic adjustment to chronic pain, the causal direction of these relationships remains unclear. Adult attachment style is, theoretically, developmentally antecedent to cognitions, emotions and behaviours (and might therefore be expected to contribute to maladjustment). It can also be argued, however, that the experience of chronic pain increases attachment insecurity. This project examined this issue by determining associations between adult attachment characteristics, collected prior to an acute (coldpressor) pain experience, and a range of emotional, cognitive, pain tolerance, intensity and threshold variables collected during and after the coldpressor task. A convenience sample of 58 participants with no history of chronic pain was recruited. Results demonstrated that attachment anxiety was associated with lower pain thresholds; more stress, depression, and catastrophizing; diminished perceptions of control over pain; and diminished ability to decrease pain. Conversely, secure attachment was linked with lower levels of depression and catastrophizing, and more control over pain. Of particular interest were findings that attachment style moderated the effects of pain intensity on the tendency to catastrophize, such that insecurely attached individuals were more likely to catastrophize when reporting high pain intensity. This is the first study to link attachment with perceptions of pain in a pain-free sample. These findings cast anxious attachment as a vulnerability factor for chronic pain following acute episodes of pain, while secure attachment may provide more resilience. (c) 2006 International Association for the Study of Pain. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Destination image, romance and place experience - an application of intimacy theory in tourism

In some forms of tourism, and perhaps particularly in the case of special interest tourism, it can be argued that tourism encounters are service relationships with emotional attachment through the special interest focus and a level of enduring involvement on the part of participants. This involvement is two-fold. First, an interest with the activity; second, a sharing with like-minded people in a social world that extends from home to tourist destination and return. Intimacies in tourism can thus be interpreted through the model of the relationship cycle that comprises the stages A. Aquaintance, B, Buildup, C, Continuation and D, Dissolution. The paper builds upon this concept by utilising ideas of other-centred and self-centredness in personal relationships, and extends the concept of other-centredness to host environments. It also suggests that, in the academic literature about place, location may be secondary in that the quality of experience is primarily determined by the intimacies that exist between people at that place, especially that existing between visitors. © 2004 Published by Elsevier Ltd.

What determines the finance-growth nexus? Empirical evidence for threshold models

This paper elaborates the notion of balanced'' financial development that is contingent on a country's general level of development. We develop an empirical framework to address this point, referring to threshold regressions and a bootstrap test for structural shift in a growth equation. We find that countries gain less from financial activity, if the latter fails to keep up with or exceeds what would follow from a balanced expansion path. These analyses contribute to the finance and growth literature in providing empirical support for the balanced'' financial development hypothesis.

Adolescence: A useful concept for this millennium

‘Adolescence’ has become increasingly recognised as a nebulous concept. Previous conceptualisations of adolescence have adopted a ‘deficit’ view, regarding teenagers as ‘unfinished’ adults. The deficit view of adolescence is highly problematic in an era where adulthood itself is difficult to define. The terms ‘kidult’ or ‘adultescent’ have emerged to describe adult-age people whose interests and priorities match those of their teenage counterparts. Rather than relying on ‘lock-step’ models of physical, cognitive and social growth put forward by developmental psychology, adolescence can be more usefully defined by looking at the common experiences of people in their teenage years. Common experiences arise at an institutional level; for example, all adolescents are treated as the same by legal and education systems. The transition from primary to secondary schooling is a milestone for all children, exposing them to a new type of educational environment. Shared experiences also arise from generational factors. Today’s adolescents belong to the millennial generation, characterised by technological competence, global perspectives, high susceptibility to media influence, individualisation and rapid interactions. This generation focuses on teamwork, achievement, modesty and good conduct, and has great potential for significant collective accomplishments. These generational factors challenge educators to provide relevant learning experiences for today’s students. Many classrooms still utilise textbook-based pedagogy more suited to previous generations, resulting in disengagement among millennial students. Curriculum content must also be tailored to generational needs. The rapid pace of change, as well as the fluidity of identity created by dissolving geographical and vocational boundaries, mean that the millennial generation will need more than a fixed set of skills and knowledge to enter adulthood. Teachers must enable their students to think like ‘expert novices’, adept at assimilating new concepts in depth and prepared to engage in lifelong learning.

Strategic group theory:review, examination and application in the UK pharmaceutical industry

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to consider the current status of strategic group theory in the light of developments over the last three decades. and then to discuss the continuing value of the concept, both to strategic management research and practising managers. Design/methodology/approach – Critical review of the idea of strategic groups together with a practical strategic mapping illustration. Findings – Strategic group theory still provides a useful approach for management research, which allows a detailed appraisal and comparison of company strategies within an industry. Research limitations/ implications – Strategic group research would undoubtedly benefit from more directly comparable, industry-specific studies, with a more careful focus on variable selection and the statistical methods used for validation. Future studies should aim to build sets of industry specific variables that describe strategic choice within that industry. The statistical methods used to identify strategic groupings need to be robust to ensure that strategic groups are not solely an artefact of method. Practical implications – The paper looks specifically at an application of strategic group theory in the UK pharmaceutical industry. The practical benefits of strategic groups as a classification system and of strategic mapping as a strategy development and analysis tool are discussed. Originality/value – The review of strategic group theory alongside alternative taxonomies and application of the concept to the UK pharmaceutical industry.

Governance regimes, corruption and growth: theory and evidence

We study the role of political accountability as a determinant of corruption and economic growth. Our model identifies two governance regimes defined by the quality of political institutions and shows that the relationship between corruption and growth is regime specific. We use a threshold model to estimate the impact of corruption on growth where corruption is treated as an endogenous variable. We find two governance regimes, conditional on the quality of political institutions. In the regime with high quality political institutions, corruption has a substantial negative impact on growth. In the regime with low quality institutions, corruption has no impact on growth.

Using grounded theory for theory building in operations management research:a study on inter-firm relationship governance

Purpose – Qualitative theory building approaches, such as grounded theory method (GTM), are still not very widespread and rigorously applied in operations management (OM) research. Yet it is agreed that more systematic observation of current industrial phenomena is necessary to help managers deal with their problems. The purpose of this paper is to provide an example to help guide other researchers on using GTM for theory building in OM research. Design/methodology/approach – A GTM study in the German automotive industry consisting of 31 interviews is followed by a validation stage comprising a survey (110 responses) and a focus group. Findings – The result is an example of conducting GTM research in OM, illustrated by the development of the novel collaborative enterprise governance framework for inter-firm relationship governance in the German automotive industry. Research limitations/implications – GTM is appropriate for qualitative theory building research, but the resultant theories need further testing. Research is necessary to identify the transferability of the collaborative enterprise governance concept to other industries than automotive, to other organisational areas than R&D and to product and service settings that are less complex and innovative. Practical implications – The paper helps researchers make more informed use of GTM when engaging in qualitative theory building research in OM. Originality/value – There is a lack of explicit and well-informed use of GTM in OM research because of poor understanding. This paper addresses this deficiency. The collaborative enterprise governance framework is a significant contribution in an area of growing importance within OM.

Synapses, quantum theory and panpsychism

The introduction situates the ‘hard problem’ in its historical context and argues that the problem has two sides: the output side (the Kant-Eccles problem of the freedom of the Will) and the input side (the problem of qualia). The output side ultimately reduces to whether quantum mechanics can affect the operation of synapses. A discussion of the detailed molecular biology of synaptic transmission as presently understood suggests that such affects are unlikely. Instead an evolutionary argument is presented which suggests that our conviction of free agency is an evolutionarily induced illusion and hence that the Kant-Eccles problem is itself illusory. This conclusion is supported by well-known neurophysiology. The input side, the problem of qualia, of subjectivity, is not so easily outflanked. After a brief review of the neurophysiological correlates of consciousness (NCC) and of the Penrose-Hameroff microtubular neuroquantology it is again concluded that the molecular neurobiology makes quantum wave-mechanics an unlikely explanation. Instead recourse is made to an evolutionarily- and neurobiologically-informed panpsychism. The notion of an ‘emergent’ property is carefully distinguished from that of the more usual ‘system’ property used by most dual-aspect theorists (and the majority of neuroscientists) and used to support Llinas’ concept of an ‘oneiric’ consciousness continuously modified by sensory input. I conclude that a panpsychist theory, such as this, coupled with the non-classical understanding of matter flowing from quantum physics (both epistemological and scientific) may be the default and only solution to the problem posed by the presence of mind in a world of things.