A new African streak virus species from Nigeria

The African streak viruses (AfSVs) are a diverse group of mastrevirus species (family Geminiviridae) that infect a wide variety of annual and perennial grass species across the African continent and its nearby Indian Ocean islands. Six AfSV species (of which maize streak virus is the best known) have been described. Here we report the full genome sequences of eight isolates of a seventh AfSV species: Urochloa streak virus (USV), sampled from various locations in Nigeria. Despite there being good evidence of recombination in many other AfSV species, we found no convincing evidence that any of the USV sequences were either inter- or intra-species recombinants. The USV isolates, all of which appear to be variants of the same strain (their genome sequences are all more than 98% identical), share less than 69% nucleotide sequence identity with other currently described AfSV species. © 2008 Springer-Verlag.

A proposal to change existing virus species names to non-Latinized binomials

A proposal has been posted on the ICTV website (2011. 001aG. N. v1. binomial_sp_names) to replace virus species names by non-Latinized binomial names consisting of the current italicized species name with the terminal word "virus" replaced by the italicized and non-capitalized genus name to which the species belongs. If implemented, the current italicized species name Measles virus, for instance, would become Measles morbillivirus while the current virus name measles virus and its abbreviation MeV would remain unchanged. The rationale for the proposed change is presented. © 2010 Springer-Verlag.

Community development with survivors of torture and trauma : an evaluation framework

Despite an increase in community development initiatives in refugee contexts, there is a lack of evaluation frameworks to assess the effectiveness of interventions in the recovery of refugee communities. In response to this gap, the Forum of Australian Services for Survivors of Torture and Trauma has developed an evaluation framework in consultation with refugee client groups and agencies' staff members. This paper contextualizes the goals, principles and strategies of services implementing community development initiatives with torture and trauma survivors and describes the process of developing the framework within a participatory action approach. Both outcome evaluation and process evaluation are discussed, and examples of the framework are presented. Community development agencies and professionals working with survivors of torture and trauma can play a significant role by fostering community empowerment through evaluation.

Ecological dynamics as a theoretical framework for development of sustainable behaviours towards the environment

This paper proposes how the theoretical framework of ecological dynamics can provide an influential model of the learner and the learning process to pre-empt effective behaviour changes. Here we argue that ecological dynamics supports a well established model of the learner ideally suited to the environmental education context because of its emphasis on the learner-environment relationship. The model stems from perspectives on behaviour change in ecological psychology and dynamical systems theory. The salient points of the model are highlighted for educators interested in manipulating environmental constraints in the learning process, with the aim of designing effective learning programs in environmental education. We conclude by providing generic principles of application which might define the learning process in environmental education programs.

Investigating knowledge transfer through transnational programs between Indonesian and Australian universities : A conceptual framework

Globalization stimulated demand for transnational higher education. However, little is known about how transnational programs can facilitate knowledge transfer between the partner universities—something that is often implied in the partnership arrangement. For the purpose of this paper transnational programs will be limited to dual degree programs between Indonesian and Australian universities, which, in recent years have been rising. Nevertheless, the discussion and synthesis may have value to other transnational programs. Situating the knowledge transfer in the wider context of globalization of higher education and the current reforms in Indonesian education, the paper acknowledges the tension between the need to generate revenue and the ideals of facilitating knowledge transfer and capacity development for Indonesian universities. Drawing on a detailed review of research findings in the business and education sector literature, this paper presents a conceptual framework that may be used to analyze knowledge transfer between Indonesian and Australian universities. Such investigations delineate the significant drivers underlying transnational programs for supporting knowledge transfer. The proposed framework incorporates the types of knowledge, knowledge transfer mechanisms, and the processes. It also considers how the inter-university antecedents may affect the potential for knowledge transfer between the universities. A discussion of how the framework may be used to implemented knowledge transfer concludes this paper.

A generic implementation framework for stereo matching algorithms

Traditional area-based matching techniques make use of similarity metrics such as the Sum of Absolute Differences(SAD), Sum of Squared Differences (SSD) and Normalised Cross Correlation (NCC). Non-parametric matching algorithms such as the rank and census rely on the relative ordering of pixel values rather than the pixels themselves as a similarity measure. Both traditional area-based and non-parametric stereo matching techniques have an algorithmic structure which is amenable to fast hardware realisation. This investigation undertakes a performance assessment of these two families of algorithms for robustness to radiometric distortion and random noise. A generic implementation framework is presented for the stereo matching problem and the relative hardware requirements for the various metrics investigated.

The role of mindfulness in an extended TPB framework to understand drivers’ speeding intentions in school zones.

Many researchers have demonstrated the applicability of the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) in predicting both intention to speed and actual speeding behaviour. However, there remain shortcomings in the explanatory power of the TPB, with research suggesting that even when drivers had reported an intention to not speed approximately 25% of drivers report behaviour that does not align with their intentions (i.e., they engaged in speeding, Elliott & Armitage, 2006). This research explores the role of a novel and promising construct, mindfulness, in enhancing the explanatory utility of the TPB for the understanding of drivers’ speeding behaviour in school zones. Mindfulness is a concept which has been widely used in studies of consciousness, but has recently been applied to the understanding of behaviour in other areas, including clinical psychology, physical activity, education and business. It has been suggested that mindfulness can also be applied to road safety, though its application within this context currently remains limited. This study was based on an e-survey of the general driving public (N=240). Overall, the results identified mindfulness as a construct which may aid understanding of the relationship between drivers’ intentions and behaviour. Theoretically, the findings may have implications in terms of identifying mindfulness as an additional explanatory construct within a TPB framework. In road safety practice, the findings suggest that efficacious countermeasures around school zones may be those that function to heighten drivers’ mindfulness, such as flashing lights and physical speed reduction measures.

A hybrid simulation framework to assess the impact of renewable generators on a distribution network

With an increasing number of small-scale renewable generator installations, distribution network planners are faced with new technical challenges (intermittent load flows, network imbalances…). Then again, these decentralized generators (DGs) present opportunities regarding savings on network infrastructure if installed at strategic locations. How can we consider both of these aspects when building decision tools for planning future distribution networks? This paper presents a simulation framework which combines two modeling techniques: agent-based modeling (ABM) and particle swarm optimization (PSO). ABM is used to represent the different system units of the network accurately and dynamically, simulating over short time-periods. PSO is then used to find the most economical configuration of DGs over longer periods of time. The infrastructure of the framework is introduced, presenting the two modeling techniques and their integration. A case study of Townsville, Australia, is then used to illustrate the platform implementation and the outputs of a simulation.

Input-orientated data envelopment analysis framework for measuring and decomposing economic, environmental and ecological efficiency : an application to OECD agriculture

This paper presents an input-orientated data envelopment analysis (DEA) framework which allows the measurement and decomposition of economic, environmental and ecological efficiency levels in agricultural production across different countries. Economic, environmental and ecological optimisations search for optimal input combinations that minimise total costs, total amount of nutrients, and total amount of cumulative exergy contained in inputs respectively. The application of the framework to an agricultural dataset of 30 OECD countries revealed that (i) there was significant scope to make their agricultural production systemsmore environmentally and ecologically sustainable; (ii) the improvement in the environmental and ecological sustainability could be achieved by being more technically efficient and, even more significantly, by changing the input combinations; (iii) the rankings of sustainability varied significantly across OECD countries within frontier-based environmental and ecological efficiency measures and between frontier-based measures and indicators.

Using the Donabedian framework to examine the quality and safety of nursing service innovation

Aims and objectives To evaluate the safety and quality of nurse practitioner service using the audit framework of Structure,Process and Outcome. Background Health service and workforce reform are on the agenda of governments and other service providers seeking to contain healthcare costs whilst providing safe and effective health care to communities. The nurse practitioner service is one health workforce innovation that has been adopted globally to improve timely access to clinical care, but there is scant literature reporting evaluation of the quality of this service innovation. Design. A mixed-methods design within the Donabedian evaluation framework was used. Methods The Donabedian framework was used to evaluate the Structure, Process and Outcome of nurse practitioner service. A range of data collection approaches was used, including stakeholder survey (n=36), in-depth interviews (11 patients and 13 nurse practitioners) and health records data on service processes. Results The study identified that adequate and detailed preparation of Structure and Process is essential for the successful implementation of a service innovation. The multidisciplinary team was accepting of the addition of nurse practitioner service, and nurse practitioner clinical care was shown to be effective, satisfactory and safe from the perspective of the clinician stakeholders and patients. Conclusions This study demonstrated that the Donabedian framework of Structure, Process and Outcome evaluation is a valuable and validated approach to examine the safety and quality of a service innovation. Furthermore, in this study, specific Structure elements were shown to influence the quality of service processes further validating the framework and the interdependence of the Structure, Process and Outcome components. Relevance to clinical practice Understanding the structure and process requirements for establishing nursing service innovation lays the foundation for safe, effective and patient-centred clinical care.

Rail incident investigator training: Is there support for a standardised Australasian training framework?

Background: Historically rail organisations have been operating in silos and devising their own training agendas. However with the harmonisation of the Australian workplace health and safety legislation and the appointment of a national rail safety regulator in 2013, rail incident investigator experts are exploring the possibility of developing a unified approach to investigator training. Objectives: The Australian CRC for Rail Innovation commissioned a training needs analysis to identify if common training needs existed between organisations and to assess support for the development of a national competency framework for rail incident investigations. Method: Fifty-two industry experts were consulted to explore the possibility of the development of a standardised training framework. These experts were sourced from within 19 Australasian organisations, comprising Rail Operators and Regulators in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Western Australia, South Australia and New Zealand. Results: Although some competency requirements appear to be organisation specific, the vast majority of reported training requirements were generic across the Australasian rail operators and regulators. Industry experts consistently reported strong support for the development of a national training framework. Significance: The identification of both generic training requirements across organisations and strong support for standardised training indicates that the rail industry is receptive to the development of a structured training framework. The development of an Australasian learning framework could: increase efficiency in course development and reduce costs; establish recognised career pathways; and facilitate consistency with regards to investigator training.

The emerging framework of cross-border insolvency in and around Australia : Saad Investments, Japan Airlines and Lehman Brothers – part one

Recent decades have witnessed a global acceleration of legislative and private sector initiatives to deal with Cross-Border insolvency. Legislative institutions include the various national implementations of the Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency (Model Law) published by the United Nations Commission on International Trade (UNCITRAL).3 Private mechanisms include Cross-Border protocols developed and utilised by insolvency professionals and their advisers (often with the imprimatur of the judiciary), on both general and ad hoc bases. The Asia Pacific region has not escaped the effect of those developments, and the economic turmoil of the past few years has provided an early test for some of the emerging initiatives in that region. This two-part article explores the operation of those institutions through the medium of three recent cases.

The emerging framework of cross-border insolvency in and around Australia : Saad Investments, Japan Airlines and Lehman Brothers – Part Two

Recent decades have witnessed a global acceleration of legislative and private sector initiatives to deal with Cross-Border insolvency. Legislative institutions include the various national implementations of the Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency (Model Law) published by the United Nations Commission on International Trade (UNCITRAL).3 Private mechanisms include Cross-Border protocols developed and utilised by insolvency professionals and their advisers (often with the imprimatur of the judiciary), on both general and ad hoc bases. The Asia Pacific region has not escaped the effect of those developments, and the economic turmoil of the past few years has provided an early test for some of the emerging initiatives in that region. This two-part article explores the operation of those institutions through the medium of three recent cases.