The centrality of ethical leadership

Purpose The central argument in this paper is that ethical school leadership is imperative in a context of increasing performance-driven accountability. The purpose of this paper is to focus on school principals’ perceptions of how they understand ethical leadership and how they lead the ethical use of data. Design/methodology/approach This study utilises semi-structured interviews with six state school principals (one primary and six secondary) to explore their perceptions of ethical leadership practices; and how they balance current competing accountabilities in a context of performance-driven accountability. Findings There were four key findings. First, principals used data to inform and direct their practices and their conversations with teachers. Second, while ethics was a central consideration in how principals’ led, practising in an ethical manner was identified as complex and challenging in the current context. Third, Starratt’s (1996) ethical framework proved to be relevant for interpreting principals’ practices. Finally, all of the principals referred to dilemmas they faced as a result of competing priorities and all used a variety of strategies to deal with these dilemmas. Originality/value While there is a small body of research that explores school leaders’ understandings of ethical tensions and dilemmas, there is little research that has focused on school leaders’ understandings of the ethical use of data. This study, then, contributes to this area as it provides a discussion on school principals’ leadership practices in the current climate driven by data use.

Process visualization techniques for multi-perspective process comparisons

Organizations executing similar business processes need to understand the differences and similarities in activities performed across work environments. Presently, research interest is directed towards the potential of visualization for the display of process models, to support users in their analysis tasks. Although recent literature in process mining and comparison provide several methods and algorithms to perform process and log comparison, few contributions explore novel visualization approaches. This paper analyses process comparison from a design perspective, providing some practical visualization techniques as anal- ysis solutions (/to support process analysis). The design of the visual comparison has been tackled through three different points of view: the general model, the projected model and the side-by-side comparison in order to support the needs of business analysts. A case study is presented showing the application of process mining and visualization techniques to patient treatment across two Australian hospitals.

Prevalence of Chlamydia trachomatis infection in Samoan women aged 18 to 29 and assessment of possible risk factors: a community-based study

Background Knowledge about genital Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) infections in the Pacific is limited. In this study we investigated CT infection in Samoan women. Methods We recruited women having unprotected sex aged 18 to 29 years from 41 Samoan villages. They completed a questionnaire and provided a urine sample for CT testing by PCR. Associations between CT infection and possible risk factors were explored using logistic regression. Results Altogether, 239 women were recruited; 86 (36.0%; weighted estimate of prevalence: 41.9%; 95% CI: 33.4–50.5%) were positive for CT infection. A higher proportion of women aged 18 to 24 were positive (54/145; 37.2%) than those aged 25 to 29 (32/94; 34.0%; p=0.20). Being single (OR 1.92; 95% CI: 1.02–3.63) and having two or more lifetime sexual partners (OR 3.02; 95% CI: 1.19–7.67) were associated with CT infection; 27.6% of those with one lifetime partner were positive. Participants who had a previous pregnancy were less likely to be positive (OR 0.49; 95% CI: 0.27–0.87). Primiparous and multiparous women were less likely to be positive than nulliparous women (OR 0.54; 95% CI: 0.30–0.99 and OR 0.46; 95% CI: 0.24–0.89, respectively). Conclusions The prevalence of CT infection in these Samoan women is very high. Further studies, including investigating the prevalence of CT infection in men, and strategies for sustainable control are needed.

Solo holiday travellers: Motivators and drivers of satisfaction and dissatisfaction

A growing number of people are travelling alone for holidays, yet limited research addresses this topic. This paper explores the main motivators and drivers of satisfaction and dissatisfaction for solo holiday travellers using a critical incident technique (CIT) to collect and analyse data. The findings show that drivers of satisfaction for solo holiday travellers are more related to personal feelings of freedom, relaxation and discovery (personal factors), and interaction with other people (human interaction factors), than with holiday destination factors. Safety (a destination factor) and unfriendly service providers (a human interaction factor) are the main sources of dissatisfaction for solo holiday travellers.

A Web-based system enabling the integration, analysis, and 3D sub-surface visualization of groundwater monitoring data and geological models

The 3D Water Chemistry Atlas is an intuitive, open source, Web-based system that enables the three-dimensional (3D) sub-surface visualization of ground water monitoring data, overlaid on the local geological model (formation and aquifer strata). This paper firstly describes the results of evaluating existing virtual globe technologies, which led to the decision to use the Cesium open source WebGL Virtual Globe and Map Engine as the underlying platform. Next it describes the backend database and search, filtering, browse and analysis tools that were developed to enable users to interactively explore the groundwater monitoring data and interpret it spatially and temporally relative to the local geological formations and aquifers via the Cesium interface. The result is an integrated 3D visualization system that enables environmental managers and regulators to assess groundwater conditions, identify inconsistencies in the data, manage impacts and risks and make more informed decisions about coal seam gas extraction, waste water extraction, and water reuse.

Modelling of Electric Fields

South Africa has an electrical transmission grid of over 25 000 km of overhead power lines with voltages of 132 kV to 765 kV. The grid has been largely designed and built by the power utility, Eskom. This book embodies the planning philosophies, design principles and construction practices of Eskom. It is the culmination of decades of thought, study, research and the practical experience of many overhead power line engineers and researchers. The book covers the main aspects of overhead power line design and construction, from electrical first principles, system planning, insulation co-ordination (including live line working), mechanical design through to environmental impact management and power line communications. The content emphasises the need for close interaction between all technical disciplines involved and the importance of optimising designs for economy and performance. Additional challenges in South Africa are the relatively high altitude of the interior plateau (1 000 m to 1 700 m above sea level), severe lightning in some areas and long transmission distances. The book explains how these factors are accommodated in modern designs. Other advanced work covered includes the use and understanding of polymeric insulators, the judicious reduction of phase-to-phase spacings and the adoption of guyed structures.

Transferability of cupped oyster EST (Expressed Sequence Tag)-derived SNP (Single Nucleotide Polymorphism) markers to related crassostrea and ostrea species

Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are widely acknowledged as the marker of choice for many genetic and genomic applications because they show co-dominant inheritance, are highly abundant across genomes and are suitable for high-throughput genotyping. Here we evaluated the applicability of SNP markers developed from Crassostrea gigas and C. virginica expressed sequence tags (ESTs) in closely related Crassostrea and Ostrea species. A total of 213 putative interspecific level SNPs were identified from re-sequencing data in six amplicons, yielding on average of one interspecific level SNP per seven bp. High polymorphism levels were observed and the high success rate of transferability show that genic EST-derived SNP markers provide an efficient method for rapid marker development and SNP discovery in closely related oyster species. The six EST-SNP markers identified here will provide useful molecular tools for addressing questions in molecular ecology and evolution studies including for stock analysis (pedigree monitoring) in related oyster taxa.

Role of NOD2 variants in spondylarthritis

Objective. To investigate the role of the gene NOD2 in susceptibility to, and clinical manifestations of, ankylosing spondylitis (AS). Methods. A case-control study of NOD2 polymorphisms known to be associated with Crohn's disease (CD) (Pro268 Ser, Arg702 Trp, GlY908 Arg, and Len1007fsinsC) was performed in 229 cases of primary AS with no diagnosed inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), 197 cases of AS associated with IBD (referred to as colitic spondylarthritis; comprising 78 with CD and 119 with ulcerative colitis [UC]), and 229 ethnically matched, healthy controls. Associations between NOD2 polymorphisms and several clinical features of AS, including disease severity assessed by questionnaire and age at spondylarthritis onset, were also investigated. Exclusion linkage mapping of chromosome 16 was performed in a separate group of 185 multicase families with AS. Results. An association was identified between Gly908 Arg and UC spondylarthritis (P = 0.016, odds ratio [OR] 4.6, 95% confidence interval [95% CI] 1.316), and a nonsignificant trend with a similar magnitude was observed in association with CD spondylarthritis (P = 0.08, OR 3.9, 95% CI 0.8-18). The Pro268Ser variant was inversely associated with UC spondylarthritis (P = 0.003, OR 0.55, 95% CI 0.37-0.82), but not with CD spondylarthritis. No association was demonstrated between NOD2 variants and primary AS, or between other variants of NOD2 and either UC or CD spondylarthritis. Carriage of the Pro268 Ser polymorphism was associated with greater disease activity as measured by the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index (P = 0.002). Although patients with CD had a younger age at spondylarthritis onset than did those with UC (22.4 years versus 26.4 years; P = 0.01), no association was noted between the NOD2 variants linked with CD and age at spondylarthritis onset. In primary AS, the presence of a gene with a magnitude of association >2.0 was excluded (exclusion logarithm of odds score less than -2.0), and no association was observed with the microsatellite D16S3136. Conclusion. NOD2 variants do not significantly affect the risk of developing primary AS, but may influence susceptibility to, and clinical manifestations of, colitic spondylarthritis.

Hot spot detection and spatio-temporal dynamics of dengue in Queensland, Australia

Dengue has been a major public health concern in Australia since it re-emerged in Queensland in 1992-1993. This study explored spatio-temporal distribution and clustering of locally-acquired dengue cases in Queensland State, Australia and identified target areas for effective interventions. A computerised locally-acquired dengue case dataset was collected from Queensland Health for Queensland from 1993 to 2012. Descriptive spatial and temporal analyses were conducted using geographic information system tools and geostatistical techniques. Dengue hot spots were detected using SatScan method. Descriptive spatial analysis showed that a total of 2,398 locally-acquired dengue cases were recorded in central and northern regions of tropical Queensland. A seasonal pattern was observed with most of the cases occurring in autumn. Spatial and temporal variation of dengue cases was observed in the geographic areas affected by dengue over time. Tropical areas are potential high-risk areas for mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue. This study demonstrated that the locally-acquired dengue cases have exhibited a spatial and temporal variation over the past twenty years in tropical Queensland, Australia. There is a clear evidence for the existence of statistically significant clusters of dengue and these clusters varied over time. These findings enabled us to detect and target dengue clusters suggesting that the use of geospatial information can assist the health authority in planning dengue control activities and it would allow for better design and implementation of dengue management programs.

EEG seizure in bilateral ECT is different between low and high stimulus doses

Melancholic depressive patients referred for ECT were randomized to receive either low dose (n = 20) or high dose (n = 20) stimulus applied bifrontotemporally. The two stimulus groups were comparable on the clinical variables. The EEG seizure was recorded on two channels (right and left frontal), digitized, coded and analyzed offline without knowledge of ECT parameters. EEG seizure was of comparable duration in the two stimulus (high dose and low dose) groups. A new composite measure, Strength-Symmetry-Index (SSI), based on strength and symmetry of seizure EEG was computed using fractal geometry. The SSI of the early-seizure was higher in the high dose than in the low dose ECT group. In a stepwise, logistic regression model, this variable contributed to 65% with correct classification of high dose and low dose ECT seizures.

From “somatic scandals” to “a constant potential for violence”? The culture of dissection, brain-based learning, and the rewriting/rewiring of “the child”

This article analyzes the “messy and numberless beginnings” of the hope placed upon neurological foundationalism to provide a solution to the “problem” of differences between students and to the achievement of educational goals. Rather than arguing for or against educational neuroscience, the article moves through five levels to examine the conditions of possibility for subscribing to the brain as a causal organological locus of learning.

Therapeutic upper gastrointestinal endoscopy in children : An audit of 443 procedures and literature review

The safety, effectiveness and capabilities of therapeutic upper fibreoptic endoscopy in children undergoing therapeutic endoscopic procedures (n = 443) was studied. Therapy for gastrointestinal bleeding formed the major group (injection sclerotherapy for varices, n = 197 procedures; thermocoagulation for haemorrhagic gastritis, n = 1; and photocoaulation for Dieulafoy's disease, n = 1). Sclerotherapy was 97% effective in controlling acute bleeding and 84% effective in obliterating varices with no serious complications or deaths. Oesophageal dilatations for surgical, caustic, congenital and peptic strictures and achalasia (n = 193) were performed with no oesophageal perforations or deaths. Foreign bodies were retrieved (n = 34) with no failures or complications. Percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy was performed (n = 11) with one failure, proceeding to an unsuccessful surgical gastrostomy. Miscellaneous procedures included endoscopic transpyloric tube placement (n = 5) and endoscopic diathermy of pyloric web (n = 1). Therapeutic fibreoptic endoscopy is therefore concluded to be safe and effective in children, replacing rigid oesophagoscopy and some traditional surgical approaches.

Analysis of a finite composite plate with smooth rigid pin

A continuum method of analysis is presented in this paper for the problem of a smooth rigid pin in a finite composite plate subjected to uniaxial loading. The pin could be of interference, push or clearance fit. The plate is idealized to an orthotropic sheet. As the load on the plate is progressively increased, the contact along the pin-hole interface is partial above certain load levels in all three types of fit. In misfit pins (interference or clearance), such situations result in mixed boundary value problems with moving boundaries and in all of them the arc of contact and the stress and displacement fields vary nonlinearly with the applied load. In infinite domains similar problems were analysed earlier by ‘inverse formulation’ and, now, the same approach is selected for finite plates. Finite outer domains introduce analytical complexities in the satisfaction of boundary conditions. These problems are circumvented by adopting a method in which the successive integrals of boundary error functions are equated to zero. Numerical results are presented which bring out the effects of the rectangular geometry and the orthotropic property of the plate. The present solutions are the first step towards the development of special finite elements for fastener joints.

para-Nitrophenoxyacetamide

CsHsN204, M r = 197.2, monoclinic, P21/e , a= 7.818 (2), b= 7.589 (2), e= 14.790 (2)A, t= 98.43 (2) °, V= 868.02/k 3, Z = 4, D m = 1.506 (3), Dx= 1.501Mgm -3, MoKa, 2=0.7107/~, #= 0-79 mm -1, F(000) = 408, T= 426 (1) K, final R = 0.0507 for 798 observed reflections [I_> 2e(/)]. The molecules are hydrogen bonded: N-H...O = 2.886 (3), N--H = 0.97 (7), H--O = 1.92 (6) A, N-- H...O angle = 175.5 (8) °.