Rethinking sustainable urban development: Towards an integrated planning and development process

A city is the most dramatic manifestation of human activities on the environment. This human dominated organism degrades natural habitats, simplifies species composition, disrupts hydrological systems, and modifies energy flow and nutrient cycling. Sustainable urban development is seen as a panacea to minimise these externalities caused by widespread human activities on the environment. The concept of sustainable urban development has been around over a considerably long-time as the need to adopt environmentally sustainable behaviours made the international community commit to it. However, to date such development has not been achieved in large scales anywhere around the globe. This review paper aims to look at the sustainable urban development concept from the lens of planning and development integration to generate new insights and directions. The paper reports the outcome of the review of the literature on planning and development approaches—i.e., urban planning, ecological planning, urban development, sustainable urban development—and proposes a new process to support the efforts for achieving sustainable urban development—i.e., integrated urban planning and development process. The findings of this review paper highlights that adopting such holistic planning and development process generate a potential to further support the progress towards achieving sustainability agendas of our cities.

Reduction in the incidence of diabetes lower extremity amputations in Queensland : 2005-2010

Background Lower extremity amputation is a common end stage complication among people with diabetes. Since 2006, the Queensland Diabetes Clinical Network has implemented programs aimed at reducing diabetes-related amputations. The aim of this retrospective observational study was to determine the incidence of diabetes lower extremity amputations in Queensland from 2005 to 2010. Methods Data on all Queensland diabetes-related lower extremity amputation admissions from 2005-2010 was obtained using diabetes amputation-related ICD-10-AM (hospital discharge) codes. Queensland diabetes amputation incidences were calculated for both general and diabetes populations using population data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics and National Diabetes Services Scheme respectively. Chi-squared tests were used to assess changes in amputation incidence over time. Results Overall, 4,443 admissions for diabetes-related amputation occurred; 32% (1,434) were major amputations. The diabetes-related amputation incidence among the general population (per 100,000) reduced by 18% (18.2 in 2005, to 15.0 in 2010, p < 0.001); major amputations decreased by 24% (6.6 to 4.7, p < 0.01). The incidence among the diabetes population (per 1,000) reduced by 40% (6.7 in 2005, to 4.0 in 2010, p < 0.001); major amputations decreased by 45% (2.3 to 1.2, p < 0.001). Conclusion This paper appears to be the first to report a significant reduction in diabetes amputation incidence in an Australian state. This decrease has coincided with the implementation of several diabetes foot clinical programs throughout Queensland. Whilst these results are encouraging in the Australian context, further efforts are required to decrease to levels reported internationally.

The Sessional Academic Success (SAS) project

The Sessional Academic Success (SAS) project is a sustainable, distributed model for supporting sessional staff at QUT. Developed by the Learning and Teaching Unit. SAS complements our Sessional Academic Program (SAP): a sequence of formal academic development workshops explained in complementary nomination. SAS recognises that while these programs are very well received and a crucial aspect of preparing and advancing sessional teachers, they are necessarily encapsulated in the moment of their delivery and are generic, as they address all faculties (with their varied cultures, processes and pedagogies). The SAS project extends this formal, centrally offered activity into local, ‘just in time’, ongoing support within schools. It takes a distributed leadership approach. Experienced sessional academics are recruited and employed as Sessional Academic Success Advisors (SASAs). They provide sessional staff in their schools with contextually specific, needs based, peer-to-peer development opportunities; one-on-one advice on classroom management and strategies for success; and help to trouble-shoot challenges. The SASAs are trained by the Learning and Teaching Unit co-ordinator, and ongoing support is provided centrally and by school-based co-ordinators. This team approach situates the SASAs at the centre of an organisation map (see diagram of support relationships below). The SAS project aims to support sessional staff in their professional development by: • Offering contextual, needs-based support at school level by harnessing local expertise; • Providing further development opportunities that are local and focal; SAS aims to retain Sessional Staff by: • Responding to self-nominated requests for support and ‘just in time’, safe and reliable advice in times of need; • Building sessional staff confidence through help with dealing with challenges from a trusted peer; • Building a supportive academic community for sessional staff, which helps them feel a part of faculty life, and a community of teaching practice. SAS aims to support sessional staff in the development of academic teaching careers by: • Recognising the capacity of experienced sessional staff to support their peers in ways that are unique, valuable and valued and providing the agency to do so; • Providing career advancement and leadership opportunities for sessional staff. SAS takes unique approaches within each school using strategies such as: • Welcomes and schools orientation by SASAs; • Regular check ins; face-to-face advice and online support; • Compiling local resources to complement university wide resources. • Sessional-to-sessional ‘just in time’ training (eg. assessment and marking when marking commences); • Peer feedback and mentoring (the opportunities to sit in more experiences sessionals’ classes; • Sessional staff awards (nominated by students); • Communities of practice to discuss topics and issues with a view to (and support for) publishing on learning and teaching. In these ways, SASAs complement support offered by unit coordinators, administrators, and the Learning and Teaching Unit. Pairing senior and ‘understudy’ advisors ensures a line of succession, sustainability and continuity. A pilot program commenced in 2012 involving three schools (Psychology and Social Work; Electrical Engineering and Computer Science; Media, Entertainment and Creative Arts). It will be expanded across schools in 2013.

A time-based quantitative approach for selecting lean strategies for manufacturing organisations

Lean strategies have been developed to eliminate or reduce waste and thus improve operational efficiency in a manufacturing environment. However, in practice, manufacturers encounter difficulties to select appropriate lean strategies within their resource constraints and to quantitatively evaluate the perceived value of manufacturing waste reduction. This paper presents a methodology developed to quantitatively evaluate the contribution of lean strategies selected to reduce manufacturing wastes within the manufacturers’ resource (time) constraints. A mathematical model has been developed for evaluating the perceived value of lean strategies to manufacturing waste reduction and a step-by-step methodology is provided for selecting appropriate lean strategies to improve the manufacturing performance within their resource constraints. A computer program is developed in MATLAB for finding the optimum solution. With the help of a case study, the proposed methodology and developed model has been validated. A ‘lean strategy-wastes’ correlation matrix has been proposed to establish the relationship between the manufacturing wastes and lean strategies. Using the correlation matrix and applying the proposed methodology and developed mathematical model, authors came out with optimised perceived value of reduction of a manufacturer's wastes by implementing appropriate lean strategies within a manufacturer's resources constraints. Results also demonstrate that the perceived value of reduction of manufacturing wastes can significantly be changed based on policies and product strategy taken by a manufacturer. The proposed methodology can also be used in dynamic situations by changing the input in the programme developed in MATLAB. By identifying appropriate lean strategies for specific manufacturing wastes, a manufacturer can better prioritise implementation efforts and resources to maximise the success of implementing lean strategies in their organisation.

Cross-cultural learning experiences in architectural education

This qualitative study looks at the joint output of 20 architecture students from 2 different countries during their short respective Study Tours to each other’s country to discern the effect of cross-cultural experiences on their learning. This paper uses the students’ joint design efforts and reflective writings to investigate the outcome of this cross-cultural educational exchange. Their joint design efforts resulted in the making of small built structures, drawings and collaborative design proposals for an urban setting. In addition, a short questionnaire and personal interviews were also used as methods to gain insight into their experience and to use as a comparative study. The question is also raised in this paper of whether spontaneous friendship among students is integral to long term learning in a cross-cultural context in comparison to pre-designed learning objectives on the part of the educators. This paper also initiates the dialogue of the extent of cultural influences and universal ideas on collaborative architectural design. With increasing joint design ventures between architectural firms in different countries, there is interest in how collaborative design can be understood in a cross-cultural context. This paper examines short term cross cultural experiences and its contribution to architectural education.

Towards fairer assessment

Drawing on the largest Australian collection and analysis of empirical data on multiple facets of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander education in state schools to date, this article critically analyses the systemic push for standardized testing and improved scores, and argues for a greater balance of assessment types by providing alternative, inclusive, participatory approaches to student assessment. The evidence for this article derives from a major evaluation of the Stronger Smarter Learning Communities. The first large-scale picture of what is occurring in classroom assessment and pedagogy for Indigenous students is reported in this evaluation yet the focus in this article remains on the issue of fairness in student assessment. The argument presented calls for “a good balance between formative and summative assessment” (OECD, Synergies for Better Learning An International Perspective on Evaluation and Assessment, Pointers for Policy Development, 2013) at a time of unrelenting high-stakes, standardized testing in Australia with a dominance of secondary as opposed to primary uses of NAPLAN data by systems, schools and principals. A case for more “intelligent accountability in education” (O’Neill, Oxford Review of Education 39(1):4–16, 2013) together with a framework for analyzing efforts toward social justice in education (Cazden, International Journal of Educational Psychology 1(3):178–198, 2012) and fairer assessment make the case for more alternative assessment practices in recognition of the need for teachers’ pedagogic practice to cater for increased diversity.

Research and/or learning and teaching : a study of Australian professors' priorities, beliefs and behaviours

This paper presents findings from an empirical study of key aspects of the teaching and research priorities, beliefs and behaviours of 72 professorial and associate professorial academics in Science, Information Technology and Engineering across four faculties in three Australian universities. The academics ranked 16 research activities and 16 matched learning and teaching (L&T) activities from three perspectives: job satisfaction, role model behaviour and perceptions of professional importance. The findings were unequivocally in favour of research in all three areas and remarkably consistent across the universities. The only L&T activity that was ranked consistently well was 'improving student satisfaction ratings for teaching', an area in which academics are increasingly held accountable. Respondents also indicated that their seniors encourage research efforts more than L&T efforts. Recommendations include that higher education rewards for quality L&T are maintained or improved and that recognition of L&T research domains is further strengthened.

Work and the Welfare State : Street-Level Organizations and Workfare Politics

Work and the Welfare State places street-level organizations at the analytic center of welfare state politics, policy and management. This volume offers a critical examination of efforts to change the welfare state to a workfare state by looking at on-the-ground issues in six countries: the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands.

Bearing Fault Diagnostics Using the Spectral Pattern Recognition

In the field of diagnostics of rolling element bearings, the development of sophisticated techniques, such as Spectral Kurtosis and 2nd Order Cyclostationarity, extended the capability of expert users to identify not only the presence, but also the location of the damage in the bearing. Most of the signal-analysis methods, as the ones previously mentioned, result in a spectrum-like diagram that presents line frequencies or peaks in the neighbourhood of some theoretical characteristic frequencies, in case of damage. These frequencies depend only on damage position, bearing geometry and rotational speed. The major improvement in this field would be the development of algorithms with high degree of automation. This paper aims at this important objective, by discussing for the first time how these peaks can draw away from the theoretical expected frequencies as a function of different working conditions, i.e. speed, torque and lubrication. After providing a brief description of the peak-patterns associated with each type of damage, this paper shows the typical magnitudes of the deviations from the theoretical expected frequencies. The last part of the study presents some remarks about increasing the reliability of the automatic algorithm. The research is based on experimental data obtained by using artificially damaged bearings installed in a gearbox.

Prevalence of health behaviours in pregnancy at service entry in a Queensland health service district

Objective: Limited prevalence data for unhealthy pregnancy health behaviours make it difficult to prioritise primary prevention efforts for maternal and infant health. This study's objective was to establish the prevalence of cigarette smoking, sufficient fruit and vegetable intake and sufficient physical activity among women accessing antenatal clinics in a Queensland (Australia) health service district. Method: Cross-sectional self-reported smoking status, daily fruit and vegetable intake, weekly physical activity and a range of socio-demographic variables were obtained from women recruited at their initial antenatal clinic visit, over a three-month recruitment phase during 2007. Results: Analyses were based on 262 pregnant women. The study sample was broadly representative of women giving birth in the district and state, with higher representation of women with low levels of education and high income. More than one quarter of women were smoking. Few women met the guidelines for sufficient fruit (9.2%), vegetables (2.7%) or physical activity (32.8%) during pregnancy. Conclusions: There were low levels of adherence to health behaviour recommendations for pregnancy in this sample. Implications: There is a clear need to develop and evaluate effective pregnancy behaviour interventions to improve primary prevention in maternal and infant health. Brief minimal contact interventions that can be delivered through primary care to create a greater primary prevention focus for maternal and infant health would be worth exploring.

CPD : Using evidence based clinical practice guidelines in the management of anaemia in patients with chronic renal failure

Anaemia is a chronic problem in patients with renal insufficiency, especially chronic renal failure (CRF). In patients with CRF, anaemia is primarily due to a deficiency in erythropoietin (EPO), a glycoprotein growth factor that stimulates RBC production. The long-term effects and burden of anaemia for patients with CRF can be physical, emotional and financial. With efficient, systematic management of anaemia, clinicians have the potential to realise not only better clinical outcomes for CRF patients but also significant cost savings for them and the health system. During the last decade, significant advances have been made in clinicians’ understanding of how best to manage anaemia in this vulnerable population. One of the most important efforts to improve clinical practice has been the development of best practice guidelines.

Prevention and treatment of acute radiation-induced skin reactions : a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Background Radiation-induced skin reaction (RISR) is a common side effect that affects the majority of cancer patients receiving radiation treatment. RISR is often characterised by swelling,redness, pigmentation, fibrosis, and ulceration, pain, warmth, burning, and itching of the skin. The aim of this systematic review was to assess the effects of interventions which aim to prevent or manage RISR in people with cancer. Methods We searched the following databases up to November 2012: Cochrane Skin Group Specialised Register, CENTRAL (2012, Issue 11), MEDLINE (from 1946), EMBASE (from 1974), PsycINFO (from 1806), CINAHL (from 1981) and LILACS (from 1982). Randomized controlled trials evaluating interventions for preventing or managing RISR in cancer patients were included. The primary outcomes were development of RISR, and levels of RISR and symptom severity. Secondary outcomes were time taken to develop erythema or dry desquamation; quality of life; time taken to heal, a number of skin reaction and symptom severity measures; cost, participant satisfaction; ease of use and adverse effects. Where appropriate, we pooled results of randomized controlled trials using mean differences (MD) or odd ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results Forty-seven studies were included in this review. These evaluated six types of interventions (oral systemic medications; skin care practices; steroidal topical therapies; non-steroidal topical therapies; dressings and other). Findings from two meta-analyses demonstrated significant benefits of oral Wobe-Mugos E for preventing RISR (OR 0.13 (95% CI 0.05 to 0.38)) and limiting the maximal level of RISR (MD −0.92 (95% CI −1.36 to −0.48)). Another meta-analysis reported that wearing deodorant does not influence the development of RISR (OR 0.80 (95% CI 0.47 to 1.37)). Conclusions Despite the high number of trials in this area, there is limited good, comparative research that provides definitive results suggesting the effectiveness of any single intervention for reducing RISR. More research is required to demonstrate the usefulness of a wide range of products that are being used for reducing RISR. Future efforts for reducing RISR severity should focus on promising interventions, such as Wobe-Mugos E and oral zinc.

Is recovery driven by central or peripheral factors? A role for the brain in recovery following intermittent-sprint exercise

Prolonged intermittent-sprint exercise (i.e., team sports) induce disturbances in skeletal muscle structure and function that are associated with reduced contractile function, a cascade of inflammatory responses, perceptual soreness, and a delayed return to optimal physical performance. In this context, recovery from exercise-induced fatigue is traditionally treated from a peripheral viewpoint, with the regeneration of muscle physiology and other peripheral factors the target of recovery strategies. The direction of this research narrative on post-exercise recovery differs to the increasing emphasis on the complex interaction between both central and peripheral factors regulating exercise intensity during exercise performance. Given the role of the central nervous system (CNS) in motor-unit recruitment during exercise, it too may have an integral role in post-exercise recovery. Indeed, this hypothesis is indirectly supported by an apparent disconnect in time-course changes in physiological and biochemical markers resultant from exercise and the ensuing recovery of exercise performance. Equally, improvements in perceptual recovery, even withstanding the physiological state of recovery, may interact with both feed-forward/feed-back mechanisms to influence subsequent efforts. Considering the research interest afforded to recovery methodologies designed to hasten the return of homeostasis within the muscle, the limited focus on contributors to post-exercise recovery from CNS origins is somewhat surprising. Based on this context, the current review aims to outline the potential contributions of the brain to performance recovery after strenuous exercise.

Mastering medical terminology online workbook

Key Features: "Aligns to Mastering Medical Terminology: Australia and New Zealand. Self-test to practise and revise combining forms, word roots, prefixes and suffixes. Crossword puzzles, anagrams and label-the-diagram exercises Also available iOS/Android app featuring audio glossary, flashcards and MCQs."--publisher website

Effects of wireless sensor network uncertainties on output-only modal-based damage identification

The use of Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) for Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) has become a promising approach due to many advantages such as low cost, fast and flexible deployment. However, inherent technical issues such as data synchronization error and data loss have prevented these distinct systems from being extensively used. Recently, several SHM-oriented WSNs have been proposed and believed to be able to overcome a large number of technical uncertainties. Nevertheless, there is limited research examining effects of uncertainties of generic WSN platform and verifying the capability of SHM-oriented WSNs, particularly on demanding SHM applications like modal analysis and damage identification of real civil structures. This article first reviews the major technical uncertainties of both generic and SHM-oriented WSN platforms and efforts of SHM research community to cope with them. Then, effects of the most inherent WSN uncertainty on the first level of a common Output-only Modal-based Damage Identification (OMDI) approach are intensively investigated. Experimental accelerations collected by a wired sensory system on a benchmark civil structure are initially used as clean data before being contaminated with different levels of data pollutants to simulate practical uncertainties in both WSN platforms. Statistical analyses are comprehensively employed in order to uncover the distribution pattern of the uncertainty influence on the OMDI approach. The result of this research shows that uncertainties of generic WSNs can cause serious impact for level 1 OMDI methods utilizing mode shapes. It also proves that SHM-WSN can substantially lessen the impact and obtain truly structural information without having used costly computation solutions.