This study examined the work practices of a project team that was engaged in the implementation of shared services at three tertiary level educational institutions in Barbados. Using Activity Theory as the underpinning theoretical framework, the researcher employed Development Work Research (DWR) and the Engestromian Change Labs to reveal the tensions and contradictions that occurred in the project team’s work environment. The intent was to reframe their understanding of the work practices from the everyday to the scientific, and develop new work practices to generate organisational change. The study also explored the expansive transformation that took place during the intervention process. The aim of the study was to answer the following question: In what ways, if any, did changes in the work practices of a project team contribute to changes in the planning and implementation of shared services in three Barbadian educational institutions? The research found that there were ruptures and disturbances in the work environment. These were attributed to the historically bureaucratic practices of Government which impacted negatively on the project team by impeding the development of innovative practices. The DWR intervention resulted in the resolution of the contradictions and led to effective change and expansive learning in the staff as well as a change in the approach to the implementation strategies that were being used by the project team. The team was able through dialogue and debate in the Change Labs to create a new form of practice which involved a new communication strategy and model. The new practice was used to overcome the challenge of providing timely and effective communication with the stakeholder institutions with which they were working to implement the shared services.

Class of 2007 Abstract / Objectives: The purpose of the study was to determine the factors associated with regular physical activity of students in the college of pharmacy. Methods: Pharmacy students currently enrolled and attending classes at the University of Arizona College of Pharmacy were asked to fill out a questionnaire about physical activity/exercise, nutrition, and demographics. The questionnaires were passes out 10 minutes at the end/beginning of classes. Results: Students in the high exercise/physical activity group participated in exercise/physical activity for significantly greater lengths of time in one session than those in the low group (p < 0.001). Students in the high exercise/physical activity group were more likely than the low group to exercise in the morning before school or after school or work (p = 0.00469 and 0.0375 respectively). Students in the high exercise/physical activity group answered that pharmacists and other health care professionals can influence patients to a greater extent than those in the low group ( p = 0.0482). Conclusions: Students that participate in exercise/physical activity 3-4 times per week or more were more likely to do so for longer periods of time in one session and fit it into their schedule before school/work or in the afternoon/evening after school/work. It appears that these students were more likely to have a specific time for exercise and do not rely on incidental physical activity to get their exercise. Students that are regular exercisers may feel that pharmacists and other health care professionals can influence patients to a greater extent regarding exercise than those students who do not regularly exercise.

Background: Smoking contributes to health inequalities and there is a need to focus interventions on the disadvantaged. Abrupt quitting is widely advocated, but assisted ‘reduction’ may be an option for those not ready to quit. Physical activity acutely reduces cigarette cravings and withdrawal symptoms, and may increase long-term cessation and reduce weight gain. This thesis reports on the multi-method evaluation of an intervention delivered by Health Trainers (HTs) and a pilot randomised controlled trial of the Exercise Assisted Reduction then Stop (EARS) intervention for disadvantaged smokers who are not ready to quit, but do wish to reduce, without nicotine replacement therapy. This programme of research aimed to evaluate four aspects of the EARS trial: 1) Recruitment, 2) Study attrition, 3) Main quantitative outcomes, and 4) Intervention fidelity. Methods: 1) Recruitment: Smokers were recruited through mailed invitations from three primary care practices (62 participants) and one National Health Stop Smoking Service (SSS) database (31 participants). Six other participants were recruited via a variety of other community-based approaches. Data were collected through questionnaires, field notes, work sampling, and databases. Chi-squared and t-tests were used to compare baseline characteristics of participants. 2) Study Attrition: Disadvantaged smokers who wanted to reduce but not quit were randomised (N=99), of whom 61 (62%) completed follow-up assessments at 16 weeks. Univariable logistic regression was conducted to determine the effects of intervention arm, method of recruitment, and participant characteristics (socio-demographic factors, and lifestyle, behavioural and attitudinal characteristics) on attrition, followed by multivariable logistic regression on those factors found to be related to attrition. 3) Main quantitative outcomes: Data at 16 weeks were collected for various smoking and physical activity outcomes. Primary analyses consisted of an intention to treat analysis based on complete case data. Secondary analyses explored the impact of handling missing data, examining different methods including last baseline observation carried forward, last observation carried forward, and multiple imputation. 4) Intervention fidelity: Three researchers scored a total of 90 audio recorded consultations for 30 different participants split between three HTs delivering the intervention. Delivery was scored using a 0-6 likert scale for 12 different processes identified as being fundamental to the intervention. Results: 1) Recruitment: Depending on the intensity and time invested in following up those who did not initially respond to a letter, we randomised between 5.1–11.1% of those invited through primary care and SSS, with associated researcher time to recruit one participant varying from 18 –157 minutes. Recruitment rates were similar for invitations sent from primary care and SSS. Despite substantial time and effort, only six participants of our total of 99 were recruited through a wide variety of other community-based approaches, with an associated researcher time of 469 minutes to recruit one participant. Targets for recruiting a disadvantaged population were met, with 91% of the sample in social classes C2–E, and 41% reporting moderate to severe depression or anxiety. However, we under-recruited single parent smokers. Chi squared tests revealed that those recruited from the SSS database were more likely to respond to an initial letter, had used cessation aids before and had attempted to quit in the past year. Overall, initial responders were more likely to be physically active than those who were recruited via follow-up telephone calls. No other demographic or behaviour characteristics were associated with recruitment approach or intensity of effort. Qualitative feedback indicated that participants had been attracted by the prospect of being assigned to an intervention that focused on smoking reduction rather than abrupt quitting. 2) Attrition: Participants with low confidence to quit, and who were undertaking less than 150 minutes of moderate and vigorous physical activity per week at baseline were less likely to complete the 16-week follow-up assessment. Exploratory analysis revealed that those who were lost to follow-up early in the trial (i.e., by 4 weeks), compared with those completing the study, were younger, had smoked for fewer years and had lower confidence to quit in the next 6 months. Participants who recorded a higher expired air carbon monoxide reading at baseline were more likely to drop out late in the study, as were those recruited via follow-up telephone calls. Multivariable analyses showed that only completing less than 150 minutes of physical activity retained any confidence in predicting attrition in the presence of other variables. 3) Main quantitative outcomes: Compared with controls, intervention smokers made more quit attempts (36 v 10%; Odds Ratio 5.05, (95% CI: 1.10; 23.15)), and a greater proportion achieved ≥ 50% reduction in cigarettes smoked (63 v 32%; 4.21 (1.32; 13.39). Post-quit abstinence measured by exhaled carbon monoxide at 4 week follow-up showed promising differences between groups (23% v 6%; 4.91 (0.80; 30.24). No benefit of intervention on physical activity was found. Secondary analyses suggested that the standard missing data assumption of ‘missing’ being equivalent to ‘smoking’ may be conservative resulting in a reduced intervention effect. 4) Fidelity: All three HTs demonstrated high levels of skill in delivering a client-centred motivational interviewing based intervention. Processes relating to physical activity were not delivered as well as those relating to smoking behaviour. Processes related to social support were poorly delivered. There was little variation between individual HT scores and the scores of the researchers completing the scoring. Conclusions: 1) Recruitment: Mailed invitations, and follow-up, from health professionals was an effective method of recruiting disadvantaged smokers into a trial of an exercise intervention to aid smoking reduction. Recruitment via community outreach approaches was largely ineffective. 2) Study attrition: The findings indicate that those who take more effort to be recruited, are younger, are heavier smokers, have less confidence to quit, and are less physically active require more effort to be retained once recruited . 3) Main quantitative outcomes: A smoking reduction intervention for economically disadvantaged smokers which involved personal support to increase physical activity appears to be more effective than usual care in achieving reduction and may promote cessation. The effect does not appear to be influenced by an increase in physical activity. 4) Intervention fidelity was deemed to be successful overall. Key areas for improvement have been identified, including recommendations for future training as well as methodological implementation.

No description available.

This thesis presents the findings of a research project which explored students� learning during an activity-based mathematics programme. The research investigated what students learnt about solving linear equations and examined the role of activities in this learning. The investigation of learning in the classroom was guided by the principles of naturalistic enquiry. A longitudinal study was used to investigate students� learning during a unit of work that that made extensive use of activities and contexts. The longitudinal design of the study allowed the development of algebraic thinking to be investigated. The ideas of both Piaget and Vygotsky suggest that it is necessary to study the process of change in order to understand the thinking of students. A group of four students, two girls and two boys, were studied for twenty-seven lessons with each student interviewed individually within six days of each lesson, using the technique of stimulated recall. All lessons and interviews were recorded for subsequent transcription and analysis. Learning to solve equations formally, using inverse operations, proved to be difficult for all the students. For two of them, their poor understandings of arithmetic structure and inverse operations were impediments that prevented them from doing more than attempt to follow procedures. Two of the students did succeed in using inverse operations to solve equations, but were still reasoning arithmetically. There was little evidence in the data that any of the students got to the point of regarding equations as objects to act on. They consistently focussed on the arithmetic procedures required for inverse operations. Even by the end of the topic the most able student, like the others, was still struggling to write algebraic statements. One of the most striking features of the results was the slow progress of the students. For at least two of the students, lack of prerequisite numeracy skills provided a good explanation of why this was so. However for the other two, poor numeracy did not appear to be a reason. The findings are, however, perhaps not too surprising. For children learning about arithmetic, the change from a process to an object view, from counting strategies to part/whole strategies, seems a particularly difficult transition to make. To move from a process to an object view of equations appears to be a similarly difficult transition. The way in which the students made use of the contexts showed that the activities did not directly facilitate the students to develop an understanding of formal solution processes. The students did not usually make use of the contexts when solving equations, working at the abstract symbolic level instead. Although it was hoped that, by engaging students in meaningful activities, the students would construct understandings of formal solution processes, this did not occur. None of the activities used in the study provided a metaphor for the formal method of solving equations. It is suggested that, for a context to be of great value for teaching a mathematical concept, the physical activity should act as a metaphor for the intended mathematical activity.

The evaluation of Australian outdoor education activity has been conspicuous by its absence. While outdoor education in Australia is experiencing a dramatic growth in facilities and programs, while state departments of education are calling for 'school-based' evaluations, while accountability is becoming an increasingly likely prospect and while high-risk activities are acknowledged as common elements in outdoor education, Australian outdoor educators have yet to avail themselves of the benefits available through formal evaluation. One significant reason for this evaluation inactivity arises from the massive and often conflicting evaluation literature confronting outdoor educators. To help outdoor educators overcome both the daunting task of putting a sense of order into the myriad evaluation methodologies and the possibility of implementing an evaluation unsuited to the outdoor educator's needs, this study presents two dimensions from which the outdoor educator might usefully view evaluation methodologies. The first dimension is that of the prepositional and tacit knowledge value bases, which will help the outdoor educator to understand better not only his own aims/approaches to education, but also the type of knowledge valued as important by specific evaluation methodologies. The second dimension is that of program awareness, which will aid the outdoor educator to identify the levels of descriptiveness or depth and the type of personal involvement by the evaluator which the outdoor educator would be seeking through formal evaluation. Application of these dimensions includes a review and classification of evaluation literature within these dimensions, commencing with the 'pre-Tyler' period, thence Tyler, Glaser, Provus, Popham, Stufflebeam, Alkin, Cronbach, Scriven, Atkin, Eisner, Stenhouse, Stake, and Parlett and Hamilton. A number of outdoor education evaluations conducted predominantly overseas are then classified according to their propositional or tacit knowledge value base as a further demonstration of the applicability of the value base dimension for the outdoor educator hoping to gain useful information from evaluations conducted previously. Evaluations reflecting ambiguity in value base and outdoor education guidelines representative of the propositional and tacit knowledge value bases are also presented. Although suggesting the bi-polar nature of the value base dimension and the rather significant difference in degrees of program awareness available through formal evaluation, this study argues strongly that it is through an appreciation and understanding of alternative evaluation methodologies that outdoor educators might more capably be able to establish the nature of communication needed within a formal evaluation to best suit their needs and the needs of other audiences to whom evaluation reports will be directed.

The aim of the research is to demonstrate architectural design strategies and outcomes that provide alternative ways of considering the futures of areas under high developmental pressure. These areas are where the potential detrimental effects of unmediated, rapid change and development are at their most immediate and in need of consideration. Urban environments are complex physical manifestations of economic, environmental, social, cultural and political pressures represented by the often competing desires of public and private interest groups. Given the enormity of scale and complexity of these pressures, it is problematic to think of architecture as something that can design everything (perhaps as seen in traditional master planning) and in doing so, solve the problem. What may be more constructive is the consideration of architecture having the potential to be involved strategically in these issues, over a number of scales to work towards positive outcomes for the public domain. In recent years, both Victorian and Queensland state governments have released policy guiding the future growth of key regions within their borders. Each attempts to address accommodating large population increases over relatively short time periods by proposing consolidation in and around existing urban centres. This consolidation is seen as part of a strategy to limit urban sprawl and curtail its associated negative social, environmental and potential economic impacts. These targeted 'Activity Centres' become places of immanent transformation, points of pressure within the disaggregated field of the contemporary Australian city. Left un-mediated, developmental pressure in locations such as these is likely to create the same detrimental physical and social effects evident in the general prevailing homogeneity, commercialisation and piecemeal nature of current urban development. Through several architectural design projects, the research aims to explore the role of architecture as an urban mediator within these pressured locations. Through bridging scales from the broad metropolitan, to the finer grained specific, this mediation may begin to strategically 'set things up' for the public domain, towards facilitating valuable social exchange.

The cost of an aluminium extrusion die accounts for 35-50% of the total extrusion cost, hence it is important to understand the kinetics of extrusion die heat treatment. The main objective of die heat treatment is to increase the surface hardness so the surface wear property can be enhanced, which extends the die service life. Before the die material is case hardened by processes such as nitriding, the material is first heat treated to certain hardness. Thus the aim of this investigation is to understand the kinetics of carbon diffusion during steel austenitzation because it is significant to steel hardness property.H13 hot work tool steel, a well known material used as a die material for its superior mechanical and hardening properties, was used for the analysis of carbon diffusion during austenization. Samples made of H13 steel were subjected to four different atmospheric conditions: heat treatment without atmospheric control, heat treatment with stainless steel foil wrapping, pack carburization heat treatment and vacuum heat treatment. Three treatment time ranges were also applied for the carbon diffusion modelling. Some samples were further treated by gas nitriding to establish the effect of carbon content on the gas nitriding performance.It was found that decarburization occurred when atmospheric control did not take place during the heat treatment process. Through the carbon diffusion analysis, at austenitizing temperature of 1020ºC, the equilibrium surface carbon content at 1020ºC was 0.157wt%, with activation energy of carbon in H13 steel of 20,200cal/mol, and carbon diffusivity at 1020ºC was 1.97x10-8cm2/s.This study also proved that proper stainless steel foil wrapping on the heat treating material could restrict decarburization process, resulting in a constant hardness profile as vacuum heat treatment does. However the tempering characteristic between this two heat treatment methods are different to each other.For the pack carburization heat treatment, it was noted that the samples suffered from decarburization at early stage of heat treatment as carbon monoxide level was not adequate for carburization process.Results from the gas nitrided samples showed that the thickness and the hardness of the nitrided layer was independent to the carbon content in H13 steel. After 2 rounds of gas nitriding process, further nitriding seemed to have no significant effect on the hardness and thickness of the nitrided layer. Furthermore, the white layer was not observed in the nitrided samples which were heat treated without atmospheric control.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Delaware, 2007. / Principal faculty advisor: James G. Richards, College of Health Sciences. Includes bibliographical references.

A subsumption-based mobile robot is extended to perform cognitive tasks. Following directions, the robot navigates directly to previously unexplored goals. This robot exploits a novel architecture based on the idea that cognition uses the underlying machinery of interaction, imagining sensations and actions.