Barriers to and facilitators of interventions to counter publication bias: thematic analysis of scholarly articles and stakeholder interviews.

BACKGROUND: When the nature and direction of research results affect their chances of publication, a distortion of the evidence base - termed publication bias - results. Despite considerable recent efforts to implement measures to reduce the non-publication of trials, publication bias is still a major problem in medical research. The objective of our study was to identify barriers to and facilitators of interventions to prevent or reduce publication bias. METHODS: We systematically reviewed the scholarly literature and extracted data from articles. Further, we performed semi-structured interviews with stakeholders. We performed an inductive thematic analysis to identify barriers to and facilitators of interventions to counter publication bias. RESULTS: The systematic review identified 39 articles. Thirty-four of 89 invited interview partners agreed to be interviewed. We clustered interventions into four categories: prospective trial registration, incentives for reporting in peer-reviewed journals or research reports, public availability of individual patient-level data, and peer-review/editorial processes. Barriers we identified included economic and personal interests, lack of financial resources for a global comprehensive trial registry, and different legal systems. Facilitators identified included: raising awareness of the effects of publication bias, providing incentives to make data publically available, and implementing laws to enforce prospective registration and reporting of clinical trial results. CONCLUSIONS: Publication bias is a complex problem that reflects the complex system in which it occurs. The cooperation amongst stakeholders to increase public awareness of the problem, better tailoring of incentives to publish, and ultimately legislative regulations have the greatest potential for reducing publication bias.

William Clark Russell and Chambers's Journal: elopement and the Victorian nautical novel

This essay examines aspects of the serialisation of the novels of William Clark Russell, the greatest late Victorian nautical novelist. Focusing on the treatment of his work by the Edinburgh firm of Messrs Chambers, the article provides an illuminating perspective on market censorship in this period. Drawing on the archives of Chatto & Windus and the literary agent A.P. Watt, it traces the network of relations between author, agent, magazine editor and book publisher, showing how the various components of the serial market operated in the late 1880s and early 1890s.

Examining the interfaces to e-journal articles: what do users expect?

Researchers are increasingly relying on e-journals to access literature within their fields. The design of the interfaces to these journals is determined by the individual host or publisher and there appears to be little standardization. This exploratory study samples a set of sixteen home screens of e-journals from different disciplines and identifies common features across the set. The particular wording used to identify the features and their locations are recorded. An online survey of e-journal readers investigates where users would normally expect to locate features when first accessing a journal article. Comparison of observed and expected locations confirms inconsistencies across interfaces in terminology and locations. Mental models of the interface design do not appear to be well developed. A move toward standardization, based on some existing conventions, is desirable.

Caracterização dos pesquisadores em tratamento temático da informação: um estudo da produção científica por meio da análise de domínio

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Concepções dos estudos de usuários na visão dos professores dos cursos de Biblioteconomia brasileiros

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Collagenous Myofibroblastic Tumor of the Mandible: Case Report of a Unique Locally Aggressive Neoplasm Journal Head and Neck Pathology

We report a locally aggressive collagenous myofibroblastic neoplasm of the mandible in an 18-year-old male. Clinically, the lesion presented with rapid growth and irregular mandibular bone destruction. Grossly, the tumor was 10 cm in greatest dimension, light-tan, firm, and involving the posterior one-thirds of the body and inferior half of the left mandibular ramus. Histologically, the lesion was composed of a loose spindle cell proliferation interspersed with periodic dense bands of collagen. The spindle cells reacted positively to smooth muscle actin, calponin, and focally to desmin and were negative for S-100, pan-cytokeratin, CD99, CD34 and caldesmon, supporting myofibroblastic derivation. At our 4 year follow-up, the patient remained free of local recurrence and surgery related complications. The clinicopathologic findings and the differential diagnosis of this lesion is presented and discussed.

Size and book to market effects and the Fama French three factor asset pricing model: Evidence from the Australian stockmarket

The present study adds to the sparse published Australian literature on the size effect, the book to market (BM) effect and the ability of the Fama French three factor model to account for these effects and to improve on the asset pricing ability of the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM). The present study extends the 1981–1991 period examined by Halliwell, Heaney and Sawicki (1999) a further 10 years to 2000 and addresses several limitations and findings of that research. In contrast to Halliwell, Heaney and Sawicki the current study finds the three factor model provides significantly improved explanatory power over the CAPM, and evidence that the BM factor plays a role in asset pricing.

Modularity and industrial complexes:perspectives for green operations in the automotive industry

This paper discusses the possible contributions from modularity and industrial condominiums towards enhancing environmental performance in the automotive industry. The research described in this study is underpinned by a review of journal articles and books on the topics of: modularity of production systems; green operations practices, and the automotive industry and sustainability. The methodology is based on theoretical analysis of the contribution of the modular production system characteristics used in the automotive industry for Green Operations Practices (GOP). The following GOPs were considered: green buildings, eco design, green supply chains, greener manufacturing, and reverse logistics. The results are theoretical in nature; however, due to the small number of studies that investigate the relationship between modularity and sustainability, this work is relevant to increase knowledge in academic circles and among practitioners in order to understand the possible environmental benefits from modular production systems.

Theory and its role in mathematics education

The increased recognition of the theory in mathematics education is evident in numerous handbooks, journal articles, and other publications. For example, Silver and Herbst (2007) examined ―Theory in Mathematics Education Scholarship‖ in the Second Handbook of Research on Mathematics Teaching and Learning (Lester, 2007) while Cobb (2007) addressed ―Putting Philosophy to Work: Coping with Multiple Theoretical Perspectives‖ in the same handbook. And a central component of both the first and second editions of the Handbook of International Research in Mathematics Education (English, 2002; 2008) was ―advances in theory development.‖ Needless to say, the comprehensive second edition of the Handbook of Educational Psychology (Alexander & Winne, 2006) abounds with analyses of theoretical developments across a variety of disciplines and contexts. Numerous definitions of ―theory‖ appear in the literature (e.g., see Silver & Herbst, in Lester, 2007). It is not our intention to provide a ―one-size-fits-all‖ definition of theory per se as applied to our discipline; rather we consider multiple perspectives on theory and its many roles in improving the teaching and learning of mathematics in varied contexts.

A new multilevel converter configuration for high power and high quality applications

The Queensland University of Technology (QUT) allows the presentation of theses for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the format of published or submitted papers, where such papers have been published, accepted or submitted during the period of candidature. This thesis is composed of ten published /submitted papers and book chapters of which nine have been published and one is under review. This project is financially supported by an Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery Grant with the aim of investigating multilevel topologies for high quality and high power applications, with specific emphasis on renewable energy systems. The rapid evolution of renewable energy within the last several years has resulted in the design of efficient power converters suitable for medium and high-power applications such as wind turbine and photovoltaic (PV) systems. Today, the industrial trend is moving away from heavy and bulky passive components to power converter systems that use more and more semiconductor elements controlled by powerful processor systems. However, it is hard to connect the traditional converters to the high and medium voltage grids, as a single power switch cannot stand at high voltage. For these reasons, a new family of multilevel inverters has appeared as a solution for working with higher voltage levels. Besides this important feature, multilevel converters have the capability to generate stepped waveforms. Consequently, in comparison with conventional two-level inverters, they present lower switching losses, lower voltage stress across loads, lower electromagnetic interference (EMI) and higher quality output waveforms. These properties enable the connection of renewable energy sources directly to the grid without using expensive, bulky, heavy line transformers. Additionally, they minimize the size of the passive filter and increase the durability of electrical devices. However, multilevel converters have only been utilised in very particular applications, mainly due to the structural limitations, high cost and complexity of the multilevel converter system and control. New developments in the fields of power semiconductor switches and processors will favor the multilevel converters for many other fields of application. The main application for the multilevel converter presented in this work is the front-end power converter in renewable energy systems. Diode-clamped and cascade converters are the most common type of multilevel converters widely used in different renewable energy system applications. However, some drawbacks – such as capacitor voltage imbalance, number of components, and complexity of the control system – still exist, and these are investigated in the framework of this thesis. Various simulations using software simulation tools are undertaken and are used to study different cases. The feasibility of the developments is underlined with a series of experimental results. This thesis is divided into two main sections. The first section focuses on solving the capacitor voltage imbalance for a wide range of applications, and on decreasing the complexity of the control strategy on the inverter side. The idea of using sharing switches at the output structure of the DC-DC front-end converters is proposed to balance the series DC link capacitors. A new family of multioutput DC-DC converters is proposed for renewable energy systems connected to the DC link voltage of diode-clamped converters. The main objective of this type of converter is the sharing of the total output voltage into several series voltage levels using sharing switches. This solves the problems associated with capacitor voltage imbalance in diode-clamped multilevel converters. These converters adjust the variable and unregulated DC voltage generated by renewable energy systems (such as PV) to the desirable series multiple voltage levels at the inverter DC side. A multi-output boost (MOB) converter, with one inductor and series output voltage, is presented. This converter is suitable for renewable energy systems based on diode-clamped converters because it boosts the low output voltage and provides the series capacitor at the output side. A simple control strategy using cross voltage control with internal current loop is presented to obtain the desired voltage levels at the output voltage. The proposed topology and control strategy are validated by simulation and hardware results. Using the idea of voltage sharing switches, the circuit structure of different topologies of multi-output DC-DC converters – or multi-output voltage sharing (MOVS) converters – have been proposed. In order to verify the feasibility of this topology and its application, steady state and dynamic analyses have been carried out. Simulation and experiments using the proposed control strategy have verified the mathematical analysis. The second part of this thesis addresses the second problem of multilevel converters: the need to improve their quality with minimum cost and complexity. This is related to utilising asymmetrical multilevel topologies instead of conventional multilevel converters; this can increase the quality of output waveforms with a minimum number of components. It also allows for a reduction in the cost and complexity of systems while maintaining the same output quality, or for an increase in the quality while maintaining the same cost and complexity. Therefore, the asymmetrical configuration for two common types of multilevel converters – diode-clamped and cascade converters – is investigated. Also, as well as addressing the maximisation of the output voltage resolution, some technical issues – such as adjacent switching vectors – should be taken into account in asymmetrical multilevel configurations to keep the total harmonic distortion (THD) and switching losses to a minimum. Thus, the asymmetrical diode-clamped converter is proposed. An appropriate asymmetrical DC link arrangement is presented for four-level diode-clamped converters by keeping adjacent switching vectors. In this way, five-level inverter performance is achieved for the same level of complexity of the four-level inverter. Dealing with the capacitor voltage imbalance problem in asymmetrical diodeclamped converters has inspired the proposal for two different DC-DC topologies with a suitable control strategy. A Triple-Output Boost (TOB) converter and a Boost 3-Output Voltage Sharing (Boost-3OVS) converter connected to the four-level diode-clamped converter are proposed to arrange the proposed asymmetrical DC link for the high modulation indices and unity power factor. Cascade converters have shown their abilities and strengths in medium and high power applications. Using asymmetrical H-bridge inverters, more voltage levels can be generated in output voltage with the same number of components as the symmetrical converters. The concept of cascading multilevel H-bridge cells is used to propose a fifteen-level cascade inverter using a four-level H-bridge symmetrical diode-clamped converter, cascaded with classical two-level Hbridge inverters. A DC voltage ratio of cells is presented to obtain maximum voltage levels on output voltage, with adjacent switching vectors between all possible voltage levels; this can minimize the switching losses. This structure can save five isolated DC sources and twelve switches in comparison to conventional cascade converters with series two-level H bridge inverters. To increase the quality in presented hybrid topology with minimum number of components, a new cascade inverter is verified by cascading an asymmetrical four-level H-bridge diode-clamped inverter. An inverter with nineteen-level performance was achieved. This synthesizes more voltage levels with lower voltage and current THD, rather than using a symmetrical diode-clamped inverter with the same configuration and equivalent number of power components. Two different predictive current control methods for the switching states selection are proposed to minimise either losses or THD of voltage in hybrid converters. High voltage spikes at switching time in experimental results and investigation of a diode-clamped inverter structure raised another problem associated with high-level high voltage multilevel converters. Power switching components with fast switching, combined with hard switched-converters, produce high di/dt during turn off time. Thus, stray inductance of interconnections becomes an important issue and raises overvoltage and EMI issues correlated to the number of components. Planar busbar is a good candidate to reduce interconnection inductance in high power inverters compared with cables. The effect of different transient current loops on busbar physical structure of the high-voltage highlevel diode-clamped converters is highlighted. Design considerations of proper planar busbar are also presented to optimise the overall design of diode-clamped converters.

Overloading truck traffic study and strategy to minimise it

Overloaded truck traffic is a significant problem on highways around the world. Developing countries in particular, overloaded truck traffic causes large amounts of unexpected expenditure in terms of road maintenance because of premature pavement damage. Overloaded truck traffic is a common phenomenon in developing countries, because of inefficient road management and monitoring systems. According to the available literature, many developing countries are facing the same problem, which is economic loss caused by the existence of overloaded trucks in the traffic stream. This paper summarizes the available literature, news reports, journal articles and traffic research regarding overloaded traffic. It examines the issue of overloading and the strategies and legislation used in developed countries.

Equity in the twenty-first century

Issues of equity and inequity have always been part of employment relations and are a fundamental part of the industrial landscape. For example, in most countries in the nineteenth century and a large part of the twentieth century women and members of ethnic groups (often a minority in the workforce) were barred from certain occupations, industries or work locations, and received less pay than the dominant male ethnic group for the same work. In recent decades attention has been focused on issues of equity between groups, predominantly women and different ethnic groups in the workforce. This has been embodied in industrial legislation, for example in equal pay for women and men, and frequently in specific equity legislation. In this way a whole new area of law and associated workplace practice has developed in many countries. Historically, employment relations and industrial relations research has not examined employment issues disaggregated by gender or ethnic group. Born out of concern with conflict and regulation at the workplace, studies tended to concentrate on white, male, unionized workers in manufacturing and heavy industry (Ackers, 2002, p. 4). The influential systems model crafted by Dunlop (1958) gave rise to The discipline’s preoccupation with the ‘problem of order’ [which] ensures the invisibility of women, not only because women have generally been less successful in mobilizing around their own needs and discontents, but more profoundly because this approach identifies the employment relationship as the ultimate source of power and conflict at work (Forrest, 1993, p. 410). While ‘the system approach does not deliberately exclude gender . . . by reproducing a very narrow research approach and understanding of issues of relevance for the research, gender is in general excluded or looked on as something of peripheral interest’ (Hansen, 2002, p. 198). However, long-lived patterns of gender segregation in occupations and industries, together with discriminatory access to work and social views about women and ethnic groups in the paid workforce, mean that the employment experience of women and ethnic groups is frequently quite different to that of men in the dominant ethnic group. Since the 1980s, research into women and employment has figured in the employment relations literature, but it is often relegated to a separate category in specific articles or book chapters, with women implicitly or explicitly seen as the atypical or exceptional worker (Hansen, 2002; Wajcman, 2000). The same conclusion can be reached for other groups with different labour force patterns and employment outcomes. This chapter proposes that awareness of equity issues is central to employment relations. Like industrial relations legislation and approaches, each country will have a unique set of equity policies and legislation, reflecting their history and culture. Yet while most books on employment and industrial relations deal with issues of equity in a separate chapter (most commonly on equity for women or more recently on ‘diversity’), the reality in the workplace is that all types of legislation and policies which impact on the wages and working conditions interact, and their impact cannot be disentangled one from another. When discussing equity in workplaces in the twenty-first century we are now faced with a plethora of different terms in English. Terms used include discrimination, equity, equal opportunity, affirmative action and diversity with all its variants (workplace diversity, managing diversity, and so on). There is a lack of agreed definitions, particularly when the terms are used outside of a legislative context. This ‘shifting linguistic terrain’ (Kennedy-Dubourdieu, 2006b, p. 3) varies from country to country and changes over time even within the one country. There is frequently a division made between equity and its related concepts and the range of expressions using the term ‘diversity’ (Wilson and Iles, 1999; Thomas and Ely, 1996). These present dilemmas for practitioners and researchers due to the amount and range of ideas prevalent – and the breadth of issues that are covered when we say ‘equity and diversity in employment’. To add to these dilemmas, the literature on equity and diversity has become bifurcated: the literature on workplace diversity/management diversity appears largely in the business literature while that on equity in employment appears frequently in legal and industrial relations journals. Workplaces of the twenty-first century differ from those of the nineteenth and twentieth century not only in the way they deal with individual and group differences but also in the way they interpret what are fair and equitable outcomes for different individuals and groups. These variations are the result of a range of social conditions, legislation and workplace constraints that have influenced the development of employment equity and the management of diversity. Attempts to achieve employment equity have primarily been dealt with through legislative means, and in the last fifty years this legislation has included elements of anti-discrimination, affirmative action, and equal employment opportunity in virtually all OECD countries (Mor Barak, 2005, pp. 17–52). Established on human rights and social justice principles, this legislation is based on the premise that systemic discrimination has and/or continues to exist in the labour force and particular groups of citizens have less advantageous employment outcomes. It is based on group identity, and employment equity programmes in general apply across all workplaces and are mandatory. The more recent notions of diversity in the workplace are based on ideas coming principally from the USA in the 1980s which have spread widely in the Western world since the 1990s. Broadly speaking, diversity ideas focus on individual differences either on their own or in concert with the idea of group differences. The diversity literature is based on a business case: that is diversity is profitable in a variety of ways for business, and generally lacks a social justice or human rights justification (Burgess et al., 2009, pp. 81–2). Managing diversity is represented at the organizational level as a voluntary and local programme. This chapter discusses some major models and theories for equity and diversity. It begins by charting the history of ideas about equity in employment and then briefly discusses what is meant by equality and equity. The chapter then analyses the major debates about the ways in which equity can be achieved. The more recent ideas about diversity are then discussed, including the history of these ideas and the principles which guide this concept. The following section discusses both major frameworks of equity and diversity. The chapter then raises some ways in which insights from the equity and diversity literature can inform employment relations. Finally, the future of equity and diversity ideas is discussed.

Malcolm Shepherd Knowles : A History of His Thought

This book traces the evolution of thinking of the American adult educator, Malcolm Knowles, and maps the development of his conceptual framework over the period 1950 to 1995. It constructs an overall narrative history of Knowles’ thought, and shows how andragogy provided him with both a label and a unifying theme for his practical-theoretical framework aimed at producing self-directed lifelong learners. Knowles died in 1997 and left a large legacy of books and journal articles. The book examines the writings that constitute Knowles' principal works. It identifies the major elements of his thought, shows the interrelationships between ideas and indicates the major phases through which his thinking passed. Importantly, the book establishes that Knowles’ theorising was traceable and that he possessed a clear and coherent conceptual framework.

Enhancing Chinese TEFL academics' research performance : necessity and urgency

China’s increasing participation in world affairs and the growing popularity of English as a lingua franca have made significant impact on Chinese society, culture and education. As such, considerable research topics in relation to English require TEFL researchers’ attentions. Additionally, higher education reform in China has created higher demand on academics by stressing research as an important element in academics’ assessment. Recurrent rhetoric in the field of TEFL also calls on practitioners to theorise their practice. All these practical needs and theoretical arguments point to the necessity and significance of TEFL academics’ engagement in research. To find out whether Chinese TEFL academics’ research meet the new demand on them, a survey of TEFL academics at three Chinese higher institutions was conducted. One hundred eighty two of them provided valid responses which were analysed using SPSS. It was found that TEFL academics’ research productivity in each category of research products was quite low. Large percentages of them did not produce any item in the investigated categories of research. They were least productive in conference papers and research products at the national level. However for these least productive categories, there were highly-productive TEFL academics. The categories of research where the TEFL academics were found relatively productive were non-core journal articles and provincial projects. The findings suggest that it is necessary and urgent for Chinese TEFL academics to enhance their research productivity to be able to meet the demand that new era has rendered.