A large-scale computing infrastructure for design education

Most departmental computing infrastructure reflects the state of networking technology and available funds at the time of construction, which converge in a preconceived notion of homogeneity of network architecture and usage patterns. The DMAN (Digital Media Access Network) project, a large-scale server and network foundation for the Hong Kong Polytechnic University's School of Design was created as a platform that would support a highly complex academic environment while giving maximum freedom to students, faculty and researchers through simplicity and ease of use. As a centralized multi-user computation backbone, DMAN faces an extremely hetrogeneous user and application profile, exceeding implementation and maintenance challenges of typical enterprise, and even most academic server set-ups. This paper sumarizes the specification, implementation and application of the system while describing its significance for design education in a computational context.

The impact of planning delays and other holding costs on housing affordability

Housing affordability is gaining increasing prominence in the Australian socioeconomic landscape, despite strong economic growth and prosperity. It is a major consideration for any new development. However, it is multi-dimensional, has many facets, is complex and interwoven. One factor widely held to impact housing affordability is holding costs. Although it is only one contributor, the nature and extent of its impact requires clarification. It is certainly more multifarious than simple calculation of the interest or opportunity cost of land holding. For example, preliminary analysis suggests that even small shifts in the regulatory assessment period can significantly affect housing affordability. Other costs associated with “holding” also impact housing affordability, however these costs cannot always be easily identified. Nevertheless it can be said that ultimately the real impact is felt by those whom can least afford it - new home buyers whom can be relatively easily pushed into the realms of un-affordability.

Computational fluid dynamics of a centrifugal heart pump as biventricular assist device(BVAD)

The results of a recent study have shown that there is a severe shortage of donor hearts to meet the demand of patients suffering from acute heart failures, and patients who received a left ventricular assist device (LVAD) have extended lives. However, some of them develop right heart failure syndrome, and these patients required a right ventricular assist device (RVAD). Hence, current research focus is in the development of a bi-ventricular assist device (Bi-VAD). Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) is useful for estimating blood damage for design of a Bi-VAD centrifugal heart pump to meet the demand of the left and right ventricles of a normal hearts with a flow rate of 5 lit/min and the supply pressure of 100 mmHg for the left ventricle and 20 mmHg for the right ventricle. Numerical studies have been conducted to predict pressure, flow rate, the velocity profiles, and streamlines in a continuous flow Bi-VAD using. Based on the predictions of numerical simulations, only few flow regions in the Bi-VAD exhibited signs of velocity profiles and stagnation points, thereby signifying potentially low levels of thrombogenesis.

Business Service Management

Business Service Management describes the emerging discipline dedicated to the IT-enabled management of services as corporate assets. Business Service Management deals with the service orientation of the organisation and the provisioning and use of business services. The term business service describes an autonomous transformational capability that is offered to and consumed by external or internal customers for their benefit. The prefix ‘business’ stresses that such a service has a market value, requires the ability to be managed internally as a corporate asset and that its implementation is technology-agnostic. While business services (or so called capabilities) have attracted the attention of many vendors and organisations, a lack of understanding of the activities required for the successful management of such business services remains a critical issue. In order to fill this gap, a framework consisting of Service Lifecycle Management, Service Value Management, Service Relationship Management and Service Enablement is proposed. This Framework has the potential to provide organisations with the much needed guidance in their attempts to convert current IT-driven service initiatives into successful service-centric business models.

Polyurethane (PU) scaffolds prepared by solvent casting/particulate leaching (SCPL) combined with centrifugation

This article reports an enhanced solvent casting/particulate (salt) leaching (SCPL) method developed for preparing three-dimensional porous polyurethane (PU) scaffolds for cardiac tissue engineering. The solvent for the preparation of the PU scaffolds was a mixture of dimethylformamide (DFM) and tetrahydrofuran (THF). The enhanced method involved the combination of a conventional SCPL method and a step of centrifugation, with the centrifugation being employed to improve the pore uniformity and the pore interconnectivity of scaffolds. Highly porous three-dimensional scaffolds with a well interconnected porous structure could be achieved at the polymer solution concentration of up to 20% by air or vacuum drying to remove the solvent. When the salt particle sizes of 212-295, 295-425, or 425-531 µm and a 15% w/v polymer solution concentration were used, the porosity of the scaffolds was between 83-92% and the compression moduli of the scaffolds were between 13 kPa and 28 kPa. Type I collagen acidic solution was introduced into the pores of a PU scaffold to coat the collagen onto the pore walls throughout the whole PU scaffold. The human aortic endothelial cells (HAECs) cultured in the collagen-coated PU scaffold for 2 weeks were observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). It was shown that the enhanced SCPL method and the collagen coating resulted in a spatially uniform distribution of cells throughout the collagen-coated PU scaffold.

Does pedagogy still rule?

Theories on teaching and learning for adult learners are constantly being reviewed and discussed in the higher educational environment. Theories are not static and appear to be in a constant developmental process. This paper discusses three of these theories: pedagogy, andragogy and heutagogy. It is argued that although educators engage in many of the principles of either student-centered (andragogy) and self-determined (heutagogy) learning, it is not possible to fully implement either theory. The two main limitations are the requirements of both internal and external stakeholders, such as accrediting bodies and requirements to assess all student learning. A reversion to teacher-centered learning (pedagogy) ensues. In summary, we engage in many action-oriented learning activities but revert to teacher-centered approaches in terms of content and assessment.