Using information communication technologies to develop dynamic curriculum frameworks for diverse cohorts: a case study from event management

This article investigates the role of information communication technologies (ICTs) in establishing a well-aligned, authentic learning environment for a diverse cohort of non-cognate and cognate students studying event management in a higher education context. Based on a case study which examined the way ICTs assisted in accommodating diverse learning needs, styles and stages in an event management subject offered in the Creative Industries Faculty at Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane, Australia, the article uses an action research approach to generate grounded, empirical data on the effectiveness of the dynamic, individualised curriculum frameworks that the use of ICTs makes possible. The study provides insights into the way non-cognate and cognate students respond to different learning tools. It finds that whilst non-cognate and cognate students do respond to learning tools differently, due to a differing degree of emphasis on technical, task or theoretical competencies, the use of ICTs allows all students to improve their performance by providing multiple points of entry into the content. In this respect, whilst the article focuses on the way ICTs can be used to develop an authentic, well-aligned curriculum model that meets the needs of event management students in a higher education context, with findings relevant for event educators in Business, Hospitality, Tourism and Creative Industries, the strategies outlined may also be useful for educators in other fields who are faced with similar challenges when designing and developing curriculum for diverse cohorts.

Functional neuroanatomy of auditory mismatch processing : an event-related fMRI study of duration-deviant oddballs

This study was designed to identify the neural networks underlying automatic auditory deviance detection in 10 healthy subjects using functional magnetic resonance imaging. We measured blood oxygenation level-dependent contrasts derived from the comparison of blocks of stimuli presented as a series of standard tones (50 ms duration) alone versus blocks that contained rare duration-deviant tones (100 ms) that were interspersed among a series of frequent standard tones while subjects were watching a silent movie. Possible effects of scanner noise were assessed by a “no tone” condition. In line with previous positron emission tomography and EEG source modeling studies, we found temporal lobe and prefrontal cortical activation that was associated with auditory duration mismatch processing. Data were also analyzed employing an event-related hemodynamic response model, which confirmed activation in response to duration-deviant tones bilaterally in the superior temporal gyrus and prefrontally in the right inferior and middle frontal gyri. In line with previous electrophysiological reports, mismatch activation of these brain regions was significantly correlated with age. These findings suggest a close relationship of the event-related hemodynamic response pattern with the corresponding electrophysiological activity underlying the event-related “mismatch negativity” potential, a putative measure of auditory sensory memory.

Neural correlates of semantic priming for ambiguous words: An event-related fMRI study

We investigated the neural correlates of semantic priming by using event-related fMRI to record blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) responses while participants performed speeded lexical decisions (word/nonword) on visually presented related versus unrelated prime-target pairs. A long stimulus onset asynchrony of 1000 ms was employed, which allowed for increased controlled processing and selective frequency-based ambiguity priming. Conditions included an ambiguous word prime (e.g. bank) and a target related to its dominant (e.g. money) or subordinate meaning (e.g. river). Compared to an unrelated condition, primed dominant targets were associated with increased activity in the LIFG, the right anterior cingulate and superior temporal gyrus, suggesting postlexical semantic integrative mechanisms, while increased right supramarginal activity for the unrelated condition was consistent with expectancy based priming. Subordinate targets were not primed and were associated with reduced activity primarily in occipitotemporal regions associated with word recognition, which may be consistent with frequency-based meaning suppression. These findings provide new insights into the neural substrates of semantic priming and the functional-anatomic correlates of lexical ambiguity suppression mechanisms.

Orthographic/phonological facilitation of naming responses in the picture-word task: An event-related fMRI study using overt vocal responding

In the picture-word interference task, naming responses are facilitated when a distractor word is orthographically and phonologically related to the depicted object as compared to an unrelated word. We used event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate the cerebral hemodynamic responses associated with this priming effect. Serial (or independent-stage) and interactive models of word production that explicitly account for picture-word interference effects assume that the locus of the effect is at the level of retrieving phonological codes, a role attributed recently to the left posterior superior temporal cortex (Wernicke's area). This assumption was tested by randomly presenting participants with trials from orthographically related and unrelated distractor conditions and acquiring image volumes coincident with the estimated peak hemodynamic response for each trial. Overt naming responses occurred in the absence of scanner noise, allowing reaction time data to be recorded. Analysis of this data confirmed the priming effect. Analysis of the fMRI data revealed blood oxygen level-dependent signal decreases in Wernicke's area and the right anterior temporal cortex, whereas signal increases were observed in the anterior cingulate, the right orbitomedial prefrontal, somatosensory, and inferior parietal cortices, and the occipital lobe. The results are interpreted as supporting the locus for the facilitation effect as assumed by both classes of theoretical model of word production. In addition, our results raise the possibilities that, counterintuitively, picture-word interference might be increased by the presentation of orthographically related distractors, due to competition introduced by activation of phonologically related word forms, and that this competition requires inhibitory processes to be resolved. The priming effect is therefore viewed as being sufficient to offset the increased interference. We conclude that information from functional imaging studies might be useful for constraining theoretical models of word production.

The semantic interference effect in the picture-word paradigm: An event-related fMRI study employing overt responses

We used event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate neural responses associated with the semantic interference (SI) effect in the picture-word task. Independent stage models of word production assume that the locus of the SI effect is at the conceptual processing level (Levelt et al. [1999]: Behav Brain Sci 22:1-75), whereas interactive models postulate that it occurs at phonological retrieval (Starreveld and La Heij [1996]: J Exp Psychol Learn Mem Cogn 22:896-918). In both types of model resolution of the SI effect occurs as a result of competitive, spreading activation without the involvement of inhibitory links. These assumptions were tested by randomly presenting participants with trials from semantically-related and lexical control distractor conditions and acquiring image volumes coincident with the estimated peak hemodynamic response for each trial. Overt vocalization of picture names occurred in the absence of scanner noise, allowing reaction time (RT) data to be collected. Analysis of the RT data confirmed the SI effect. Regions showing differential hemodynamic responses during the SI effect included the left mid section of the middle temporal gyrus, left posterior superior temporal gyrus, left anterior cingulate cortex, and bilateral orbitomedial prefrontal cortex. Additional responses were observed in the frontal eye fields, left inferior parietal lobule, and right anterior temporal and occipital cortex. The results are interpreted as indirectly supporting interactive models that allow spreading activation between both conceptual processing and phonological retrieval levels of word production. In addition, the data confirm that selective attention/response suppression has a role in resolving the SI effect similar to the way in which Stroop interference is resolved. We conclude that neuroimaging studies can provide information about the neuroanatomical organization of the lexical system that may prove useful for constraining theoretical models of word production.

Using Discrete Event Simulation (DES) to manage theatre operations in healthcare: An audit-based case study

This paper discusses the application of Discrete Event Simulation (DES) in modelling the complex relationship between patient types, case-mix and operating theatre allocation in a large National Health Service (NHS) Trust in London. The simulation model that was constructed described the main features of nine theatres, focusing on operational processes and patient throughput times. The model was used to test three scenarios of case-mix and to demonstrate the potential of using simulation modelling as a cost effective method for understanding the issues of healthcare operations management and the role of simulation techniques in problem solving. The results indicated that removing all day cases will reduce patient throughput by 23.3% and the utilization of the orthopaedic theatre in particular by 6.5%. This represents a case example of how DES can be used by healthcare managers to inform decision making. © 2008 IEEE.

Differential cognitive responses to guqin music and piano music in Chinese subjects: an event-related potential study

目的 研究古琴(一种古老的中国乐器)和钢琴音乐对认知的影响.方法 记录和分析了中国被试在两种音乐背景(古琴音乐,钢琴音乐)下完成听觉oddball任务的行为和事件相关电位(event-related potential,ERP)数据.结果 中国被试在本土文化的音乐环境(古琴音乐)下,前额区诱导出更大的P300,这一结果和已有的相关研究是相符的.同时,不同音乐背景对ERP产生的影响在N1和LPC(包括P300和P500)上也表现出差别:中国被试在古琴音乐背景下比钢琴音乐背景下表现出更多的右前侧颞叶的参与.结论 因为古琴音乐的五声调式和汉语发音的音调具有对应关系,因此我们推断在古琴音乐下所表现出的这种特性与被试的汉语环境有关.

Crossmodal effects of Guqin and piano music on selective attention: An event-related potential study

To compare the effects of music from different cultural environments (Guqin: Chinese music; piano: Western music) on crossmodal selective attention, behavioral and event-related potential (ERP) data in a standard two-stimulus visual oddball task were reco

Crossmodal effects of Guqin and piano music on selective attention: An event-related potential study (vol 466, pg 21, 2009)

Special thanks to Christopher Blair and Mumtaz Baig for their suggestions. This work was supported by National Basic Research Program of China (973 Program, 2007CB411600), National Natural Science Foundation of China (30621092), and Bureau of Science and Technology of Yunnan Province.

Experimental study on heavy ion single event effects in SOI SRAMs

Silicon-on-insulator (SOI) technologies have been developed for radiation-hardened military and space applications. The use of SOI has been motivated by the full dielectric isolation of individual transistors, which prevents latch-up. The sensitive region for charge collection in SOI technologies is much smaller than for bulk-silicon devices potentially making SOI devices much harder to single event upset (SEU). In this study, 64 kB SOI SRAMs were exposed to different heavy ions, such as Cu, Br, I, Kr. Experimental results show that the heavy ion SEU threshold linear energy transfer (LET) in the 64 kB SOI SRAMs is about 71.8 MeV cm(2)/mg. Accorded to the experimental results, the single event upset rate (SEUR) in space orbits were calculated and they are at the order of 10(-13) upset/(day bit).

Problems with identifying the '8200-year cold event' in terrestrial records of the Atlantic seaboard: a case study from Dooagh, Achill Island, Ireland.

The Northern Hemisphere cooling event 8200 years ago is believed to represent the last known major freshwater pulse into the North Atlantic as a result of the final collapse of the North American Laurentide ice sheet. This pulse of water is generally believed to have occurred independently of orbital variations and provides an analogue for predicted increases in high-latitude precipitation and ice melt as a result of anthropogenically driven future climate change. The precise timing, duration and magnitude of this event, however, are uncertain, with suggestions that the 100-yr meltwater cooling formed part of a longer-term cold period in the early Holocene. Here we undertook a multiproxy, high-resolution investigation of a peat sequence at Dooagh, Achill Island, on the west coast of Ireland, to determine whether the 8200-year cold event impacted upon the terrestrial vegetation immediately downwind of the proposed changes in the North Atlantic. We find clear evidence for an oscillation in the early Holocene using various measures of pollen, indicating a disruption in the vegetation leading to a grassland-dominated landscape, most probably driven by changes in precipitation rather than temperature. Radiocarbon dating was extremely problematic, however, with bulk peat samples systematically too young for the North Atlantic event, suggesting significant contamination from downward root penetration. The sustained disruption to vegetation over hundreds of years at Dooagh indicates the landscape was impacted by a long-term cooling event in the early Holocene, and not the single century length 8200-year meltwater event proposed in many other records in the North Atlantic region.

Low alanine aminotransferase levels and higher number of cardiovascular events in people with Type 2 diabetes: analysis of the Fenofibrate Intervention and Event Lowering in Diabetes (FIELD) study.

AIMS: To determine whether alanine aminotransferase or gamma-glutamyltransferase levels, as markers of liver health and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, might predict cardiovascular events in people with Type 2 diabetes.

METHODS: Data from the Fenofibrate Intervention and Event Lowering in Diabetes study were analysed to examine the relationship between liver enzymes and incident cardiovascular events (non-fatal myocardial infarction, stroke, coronary and other cardiovascular death, coronary or carotid revascularization) over 5 years.

RESULTS: Alanine aminotransferase level had a linear inverse relationship with the first cardiovascular event occurring in participants during the study period. After adjustment, for every 1 sd higher baseline alanine aminotransferase value (13.2 U/l), the risk of a cardiovascular event was 7% lower (95% CI 4-13; P=0.02). Participants with alanine aminotransferase levels below and above the reference range 8-41 U/l for women and 9-59 U/l for men, had hazard ratios for a cardiovascular event of 1.86 (95% CI 1.12-3.09) and 0.65 (95% CI 0.49-0.87), respectively (P=0.001). No relationship was found for gamma-glutamyltransferase.

CONCLUSIONS: The data may indicate that in people with Type 2 diabetes, which is associated with higher alanine aminotransferase levels because of prevalent non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, a low alanine aminotransferase level is a marker of hepatic or systemic frailty rather than health. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.