Simplified Mathematical Model for Effects of Freezing on the Low-Temperature Performance of the Lead-Acid Battery

Discharge periods of lead-acid batteries are significantly reduced at subzero centigrade temperatures. The reduction is more than what can he expected due to decreased rates of various processes caused by a lowering of temperature and occurs despite the fact that active materials are available for discharge. It is proposed that the major cause for this is the freezing of the electrolyte. The concentration of acid decreases during battery discharge with a consequent increase in the freezing temperature. A battery freezes when the discharge temperature falls below the freezing temperature. A mathematical model is developed for conditions where charge-transfer reaction is the rate-limiting step. and Tafel kinetics are applicable. It is argued that freezing begins from the midplanes of electrodes and proceeds toward the reservoir in-between. Ionic conduction stops when one of the electrodes freezes fully and the time taken to reach that point, namely the discharge period, is calculated. The predictions of the model compare well to observations made at low current density (C/5) and at -20 and -40 degrees C. At higher current densities, however, diffusional resistances become important and a more complicated moving boundary problem needs to be solved to predict the discharge periods. (C) 2009 The Electrochemical Society.

Workplace belongingness, psychological distress and resilience in emergency service workers

- Objective Ambulance personnel provide emergency medical services to the community, often attending to highly challenging and traumatic scenes in complex and chaotic circumstances. Currently the assessment of predictors of psychological well-being remains limited. The current study investigated whether workplace belongingness was significant in predicting psychological distress as well as the presence of resilience in ambulance personnel whilst controlling for more routinely examined factors. - Method Australian ambulance officers (N = 740) completed a survey battery including the Kessler 10 (Kessler & Mroczek, 1994), Brief Resilience Scale (Smith et al., 2008) and Psychological Sense of Organisational Membership (Cockshaw & Shochet, 2010) scale. - Results Controlling for more commonly examined factors such as severity of trauma exposure and length of service, hierarchical multiple regression analyses demonstrated that workplace belongingness was significantly associated with reduced distress levels and enhanced resilience levels. - Conclusions Results suggest that strategies to enhance a sense of workplace belongingness in emergency service organisations could promote the well-being of emergency workers despite routine exposure to potentially traumatic events.

Microgrid frequency control using multiple battery energy storage system (BESSs)

The work is a report of research on using multiple inverters of Battery Energy Storage Systems with angle droop controllers to share real power in an isolated micro grid system consisting of inertia based Distributed Generation units and variable load. The proposed angle droop control method helps to balance the supply and demand in the micro grid autonomous mode through charging and discharging of the Battery Energy Storage Systems while ensuring that the state of charge of the storage devices is within safe operating conditions. The proposed method is also studied for its effectiveness for frequency control. The proposed control system is verified and its performance validated with simulation software MATLAB/SIMULINK.

Motivation or demotivation of health workers providing maternal health services in rural areas in Vietnam: findings from a mixed-methods study

Background Motivation is an important driver for health professionals to maintain professional competencies, continue in a workforce and contribute to work tasks. While there is some research about motivation in health workers in low to middle income countries, maternal morbidity and mortality remains high in many low and middle income countries and this can be improved by improving the quality of maternal services and the training and skills maintenance of maternal health workers. This study examines the impact of motivation on maintenance of professional competence among maternal health workers in Vietnam using mixed methods. Methods The study consisted of a survey using a self-administered questionnaire of 240 health workers in 5 districts across two Vietnamese provinces and in-depth interviews with 43 health workers and health managers at the commune, district and provincial level to explore external factors that influenced motivation. The questionnaire includes a 23 item motivation instrument based on Kenyan health context, modified for Vietnamese language and culture. Results The 240 responses represented an estimated 95% of the target sample. Multivariate analysis showed that three factors contributed to the motivation of health workers: access to training (β = -0.14, p=0.03), ability to perform key tasks (β = 0.22, p=0.001), and shift schedule (β = -0.13, p=0.05). Motivation was higher in health workers self-identifying as competent or enabled to provide more care activities. Motivation was lower in those who worked more frequent night shifts and those who had received training in the last 12 months. The interviews identified that the latter was because they felt the training was irrelevant to them, and in some cases, they do not have opportunity to practice their learnt skills. The qualitative data also showed other factors relating to service context and organisational management practices contributed to motivation. Conclusions The study demonstrates the importance of understanding the motivations of health workers and the factors that contribute to this and may contribute to more effective management of the health workforce in low and middle income countries.

How Jung's concept of the wounded healer can guide learning and teaching in social work and human services

The concept of the “wounded healer” has been used to explain why those with adverse childhood histories often enter helping professions such as social work and human services (SWHS). Psychotherapist Carl Jung (1875–1961) believed wounded healers developed insight and resilience from their own experiences, enabling transformative interventions to occur with clients. Concerns exist that students with adverse childhood histories in SWHS may display unresolved emotional issues. This journal article explores how Jung’s interpretation of the wounded healer can be critically applied to understanding the learning needs of SWHS students with histories of abuse, neglect or other childhood adversity. The relevance of the wounded healer to SWHS education is explored in three key areas: - 1) the increased possibility of the occurrence of countertransference; - 2) the potential for vicarious traumatisation and burnout, and; - 3) personal and professional resilience displayed by SWHS students with a history of childhood adversity. The wounded healer metaphor allows for a more nuanced understanding of SWHS students with these histories. It also provides insight into the pedagogical considerations associated with teaching this student cohort.

Soveltuvuuskokeella täydennetty opiskelijavalinta : Seurantatutkimus eräiden sosiaali- ja terveysalan teknisluonteisten koulutusohjelmien (apuvälinetekniikka, hammastekniikka ja optometria) opiskelijavalinnan toteuttamisesta

Aptitude-based student selection: A study concerning the admission processes of some technically oriented healthcare degree programmes in Finland (Orthotics and Prosthetics, Dental Technology and Optometry). The data studied consisted of conveniencesamples of preadmission information and the results of the admission processes of three technically oriented healthcare degree programmes (Orthotics and Prosthetics, Dental Technology and Optometry) in Finland during the years 1977-1986 and 2003. The number of the subjects tested and interviewed in the first samples was 191, 615 and 606, and in the second 67, 64 and 89, respectively. The questions of the six studies were: I. How were different kinds of preadmission data related to each other? II. Which were the major determinants of the admission decisions? III. Did the graduated students and those who dropped out differ from each other? IV. Was it possible to predict how well students would perform in the programmes? V. How was the student selection executed in the year 2003? VI. Should clinical vs. statistical prediction or both be used? (Some remarks are presented on Meehl's argument: "Always, we might as well face it, the shadow of the statistician hovers in the background; always the actuary will have the final word.") The main results of the study were as follows: Ability tests, dexterity tests and judgements of personality traits (communication skills, initiative, stress tolerance and motivation) provided unique, non-redundant information about the applicants. Available demographic variables did not bias the judgements of personality traits. In all three programme settings, four-factor solutions (personality, reasoning, gender-technical and age-vocational with factor scores) could be extracted by the Maximum Likelihood method with graphical Varimax rotation. The personality factor dominated the final aptitude judgements and very strongly affected the selection decisions. There were no clear differences between graduated students and those who had dropped out in regard to the four factors. In addition, the factor scores did not predict how well the students performed in the programmes. Meehl's argument on the uncertainty of clinical prediction was supported by the results, which on the other hand did not provide any relevant data for rules on statistical prediction. No clear arguments for or against the aptitude-based student selection was presented. However, the structure of the aptitude measures and their impact on the admission process are now better known. The concept of "personal aptitude" is not necessarily included in the values and preferences of those in charge of organizing the schooling. Thus, obviously the most well-founded and cost-effective way to execute student selection is to rely on e.g. the grade point averages of the matriculation examination and/or written entrance exams. This procedure, according to the present study, would result in a student group which has a quite different makeup (60%) from the group selected on the basis of aptitude tests. For the recruiting organizations, instead, "personal aptitude" may be a matter of great importance. The employers, of course, decide on personnel selection. The psychologists, if consulted, are responsible for the proper use of psychological measures.

Kilpailukykyvaltion koululainsäädännön rakentuminen : Suomen eduskunta ja 1990-luvun koulutuspoliittinen käänne

Finnish education policy, educational legislation and the entire education system changed significantly during the 1990s as part of a general restructuring of public administration. There has been a clear divergence from the former tradition of a system of regulation, founded on detailed legislation and the principle of equality. The new governance, which is based more on individual choice, efficiency and evaluation, emphasizes that the development of a high standard of education is a necessity in the light of global competition. This study explores the legislative process regarding education policy in the Finnish Parliament during the 1990s, and highlights in particular how the international discourse on education policies was restructured in the context of Finnish legislation. The research material consists of all the public parliamentary documents relating to education, including government proposals, minutes from the discussions in the chamber and archive material (final protocols, reports and statements) for the Committee for Education and Culture. The discourse on the process of drafting and passing education legislation is modelled on three interrelated policy technologies (market, management and performance), which are understood here as mechanisms connecting general political ideas to normative legislation. The changes in the regulation of education were part of a general public administration reform instigated during the mid 1980s. The research results will prove that during the left-right coalition cabinet of PM Harri Holkeri, new policy technologies affected the parliamentary discourse on education policy. This was particularly influenced by a change in the preconditions for the management of education that was created as a result of the numerous demands to deregulate and delegate decision-making authority to the local and school levels while rendering the whole education system more effective. At the turn of the decade, market-type mechanisms were more indirectly manifested in the forms of individuality and freedom of choice, which were reflected, for example, in proposals to “lower the hurdles” by separating general from vocational secondary education with a view to encouraging students to select courses from other educational establishments, in addition to relaxing the requirements for establishing private schools and abolishing a hundred-year-old strict national catchment-area system. Later, in the course of the 1990s, after the subjects, players, and methods of evaluation had been more precisely defined, evaluation based on performance would result in the active measurement of the attainment of set objectives. In the spring of 1991, from the outset of PM Esko Aho's right-centre coalition cabinet, the education budget suffered cutbacks as a result of a global recession and this influenced the legislative work of, and discourses in, parliament. Representatives of the parties in power regarded the recession solely as an external factor that was remote from the political arena. In their view, the education system should rise to the challenge by ensuring the efficient and innovative use of the resources available and by developing new forms of indicators for evaluating results. Representatives of the opposition opposed the cabinet’s standpoint as a result of the recession, criticized the measures taken by pointing out the harmful effect of constantly cutting the budget and argued that the government had made political capital out of the recession by using it as an opportunity to give more room to market, management and performance technologies within the Finnish education system. Criticism of the new education policy became even stronger during PM Paavo Lipponen's first “rainbow” coalition cabinet with critical views being expressed not only from the opposition but also from representatives within the government. Representatives from the left demanded legislative restrictions and the instigation of measures to relieve the presumed negative effects of market, management and performance in the name of educational equality. The new management by results steering method within the university sector and the introduction of commercial education services in compulsory education were fiercely criticized. The argument over “setting outer limits” including, for example, the demands for more detailed legislation and earmarked state subsidies was characteristic of Parliament’s legislative discourse in the latter part of the 1990s. Keywords: education policy, education legislation, Parliament of Finland

Primary brain tumor patients’ supportive care needs and multidisciplinary rehabilitation, community and psychosocial support services: Awareness, referral and utilization

Primary brain tumors are associated with significant physical, cognitive and psychosocial changes. Although treatment guidelines recommend offering multidisciplinary rehabilitation and support services to address patients’ residual deficits, the extent to which patients access such services is unclear. This study aimed to assess patients’ supportive care needs early after diagnosis, and quantify service awareness, referral and utilization. A population-based sample of 40 adults recently diagnosed with primary brain tumors was recruited through the Queensland Cancer Registry, representing 18.9% of the eligible population of 203 patients. Patients or carer proxies completed surveys of supportive care needs at baseline (approximately three months after diagnosis) and three months later. Descriptive statistics summarized needs and service utilization, and linear regression identified predictors of service use. Unmet supportive care needs were highest at baseline for all domains, and highest for the physical and psychological needs domains at each time point. At follow-up, participants reported awareness of, referral to, and use of 32 informational, support, health professional or practical services. All or almost all participants were aware of at least one informational (100%), health professional (100%), support (97%) or practical service (94%). Participants were most commonly aware of speech therapists (97%), physiotherapists (94%) and diagnostic information from the internet (88%). Clinician referrals were most commonly made to physiotherapists (53%), speech therapists (50%) and diagnostic information booklets (44%), and accordingly, participants most commonly used physiotherapists (56%), diagnostic information booklets (47%), diagnostic information from the internet (47%), and speech therapists (43%). Comparatively low referral to and use of psychosocial services may limit patients’ abilities to cope with their condition and the changes they experience.

Achieving Quality: Consumer Involvement in Quality Evaluation of Services

[Excerpt] The aim of this paper is to raise awareness of the fact that changes in the approach towards the “clients” or “consumers” of services for people with intellectual disability do have an important impact on the way the quality evaluation systems of these services should be designed and organised.

Mitä autismin kirjon opiskelijat oppivat valmentavassa koulutuksessa

The purpose of this research was to evaluate the special vocational training programme, which aimed at enhancing the pupils with autism spectrum to prepare themselves for work and independent life. The vocational training programme is based on TEACCH (Treatment and Education of Autistic and Related Communication handicapped CHildren), which takes into account the autism spectrum disorders and autistic behaviour. TEACCH is based on the principles of structured teaching, functional teaching and preparation training for work and independent life. The TEACCH has been adapted to Finnish society and the educational system. Treatment programmes were individually designed for each student´s educational needs. There is also an important role for the AAPEP rating scale (Adolescent and Adult Psychoeducational Profile). The AAPEP has been the major tool for planning and following the courses. The AAPEP is an assessment instrument designed by the TEACCH programme, and it is used to provide an evaluation of current and potential skills. The AAPEP contains three scales: a direct observation scale, a home scale and a school / work scale. The AAPEP includes six test variables: vocational skills, independent functions, functional communication, interpersonal behaviour, vocational behaviour and leisure skills; these are evaluated at three levels: pass, emerge and fail. The subjects were 49 students (65% male and 35 % female) with autism spectrum, who have been followed and tested several times, also one year after the vocational training. The design is therefore a longitudinal one. The research data were collected 1997-2004 using the AAPEP rating scales. The teachers have used the AAPEP scales and the codings have been checked by the researcher. The results of the principal component analysis (PCA) suggested that the structure of AAPEP rating scales works quite well as a hypothesis. The factor structure of the scales of the AAPEP was almost the same in these data as in the original publications. The learning-and-changes results showed that learning is a slow process, but that there were also intended changes in several AAPEP areas. The Cohen´s kappa was used as an effect-size measure and the most important result of this research showed that the student´s skills were developing on a school / work scale; vocational skills variable (0,34), vocational behaviour variable (0,28), leisure skills variable (0,26) and on a direct observation scale; interpersonal behaviour variable (0,21). On a home scale skills of some students were developing negatively and also that effect-size was small. The results showed that the students´ vocational skills and vocational behaviour will continue to develop after school in many areas. There were differences between scales. The result of this research shows that the student´s skills were developing significantly in 3 of 48 variables on a direct observation scale and also on a home scale. On a school / work scale student´s skills were developing significantly in 17 of 48 variables. This result implies that students can do the work without extra assistance if there exist continuing supports for the skills after the vocational training. The fully independent life of students will be difficult, because their independent functions, functional communications and leisure skills regressed after the schooling. This seems to indicate that they will not manage their daily life without support. The students and their parents said that the treatment programmes were individually designed for each student s educational needs, and that they were satisfied with the programmes and services. Generally, it can be concluded that vocational special education can be developed for pupils with autistic syndrome and the detailed teaching can be done using TEACCH principles and applying the tool of AAPEP.

Outdoor family portrait after the memorial services for Therese Godshaw nee Molling at Hal Godshaws house; Argonne Drive, Kenmore, New York.

Front row from left to right: Robert Godshaw, Wendy Godshaw, Rosel Pick (Anne Godshaw's mother), Debbie Godshaw born Mariner, Hal Godshaaw, Francis Schlosstein; 2nd row from left to right: David Dysert, Mickey Sloan born McMath, Edith Godshaw nee Osterer, baby (probably Gary Godshaw), Anne Godshaw born Pick, Julius Pick (Anne's father), Ursula Schlosstein born Gottschalk, Elizabeth Krakauer nee Gottschalk, Michael Godshaw; back row from left to right: Charles (Karl-Hermann Solomon) Sloan, Gerald Godshaw (partially hidden), unknown (probably Peter Godshaw), Kurt Godshaw, John Krakauer, Donald Godshaw, Tom Krakauer, Ralph Schlosstein, John Schlosstein.

Outdoor family portrait after the memorial services for Therese Godshaw nee Molling at Hal Godshaws house; Argonne Drive, Kenmore, New York.

Front row from left to right: Robert Godshaw, Wendy Godshaw, Rosel Pick (Anne Godshaw's mother), Debbie Godshaw born Mariner, Hal Godshaaw, Francis Schlosstein; 2nd row from left to right: David Dysert, Mickey Sloan born McMath, Edith Godshaw nee Osterer, baby (probably Gary Godshaw), Anne Godshaw born Pick, Julius Pick (Anne's father), Ursula Schlosstein born Gottschalk, Elizabeth Krakauer nee Gottschalk, Michael Godshaw; back row from left to right: Charlie Sloan, Gerald Godshaw (partially hidden), unknown, Kurt Godshaw, John Krakauer, Donald Godshaw, Tom Krakauer, Ralph Schlosstein, John Schlosstein.

Deriving artefact-centric interfaces for overloaded web services

We present a novel framework and algorithms for the analysis of Web service interfaces to improve the efficiency of application integration in wide-spanning business networks. Our approach addresses the notorious issue of large and overloaded operational signatures, which are becoming increasingly prevalent on the Internet and being opened up for third-party service aggregation. Extending upon existing techniques used to refactor service interfaces based on derived artefacts of applications, namely business entities, we propose heuristics for deriving relations between business entities, and in turn, deriving permissible orders in which operations are invoked. As a result, service operations are refactored on business entity CRUD which then leads to behavioural protocols generated, thus supportive of fine-grained and flexible service discovery, composition and interaction. A prototypical implementation and analysis of web services, including those of commercial logistic systems (Fedex), are used to validate the algorithms and open up further insights into service interface synthesis.