Satellite-based delivery of educational content to geographically isolated communities: A service based approach

Enabling learning for members of geographically isolated communities presents benefits in terms of promoting regional development and cost savings for governments and companies. However, notwithstanding recent advances in e-Learning, from both technological and pedagogical perspectives, there are very few, if any, recognised methodologies for user-led design of satellite-based e-learning infrastructures. In this paper, we present a methodology for designing a satellite and wireless based network infrastructure and learning services to support distance learning for such isolated communities. This methodology entails (a) the involvement of community members in the development of targeted learning services from an early stage, and (b) a service-oriented approach to learning solution deployment. Results show, that, while the technological premises of distance learning can be accommodated by hybrid satellite/wireless infrastructures,this has to be complemented with (a) high-quality audio–visual educational material, and (b) the opportunity for community members to interact with other community members either as groups (common-room oriented scenarios) or individuals (home-based scenarios), thus providing an impetus for learner engagement in both formal and informal activities

Photonic textiles for pulse oximetry

Biomedical sensors, integrated into textiles would enable monitoring of many vitally important physiological parameters during our daily life. In this paper we demonstrate the design and performance of a textile based pulse oximeter, operating on the forefinger tip in transmission mode. The sensors consisted of plastic optical fibers integrated into common fabrics. To emit light to the human tissue and to collect transmitted light the fibers were either integrated into a textile substrate by embroidery (producing microbends with a nominal diameter of 0.5 to 2 mm) or the fibers inside woven patterns have been altered mechanically after fabric production. In our experiments we used a two-wavelength approach (690 and 830 nm) for pulse wave acquisition and arterial oxygen saturation calculation. We have fabricated different specimens to study signal yield and quality, and a cotton glove, equipped with textile based light emitter and detector, has been used to examine movement artifacts. Our results show that textile-based oximetry is feasible with sufficient data quality and its potential as a wearable health monitoring device is promising

Age at work:Explaining variation in frames of older employees in corporate and news media

Despite the fact that workforce aging is recognized as a key social and economic concern of developed countries, previous research has largely neglected the role of corporate and news media in the debate about this topic. Relying on a content analysis of five Dutch newspapers and the corporate media of 50 Dutch organizations (N = 1328), this study traces variation in frames of older workers’ employability. Results reveal that organizations in their corporate media attempt to avoid associations with problems related to older employees and highlight the solutions they offer, while news media are more inclined to problematize the issue and victimize older employees. This study elucidates our understanding of how corporate and news media communicatively deal with older workers’ employability, and how key actors drive frame-formation processes in both domains

Justice Matters:News Framing Effects on Opinions about Pension Reform

As aging populations put pressure on pension systems worldwide, pension reforms have dominated the (political) agenda in many countries for years. The media are essential information providers on such hotly debated issues. By selecting and highlighting certain aspects of an issue and glossing over others, also known as framing, news media can propagate a particular interpretation of the issue to the public. This study therefore approaches pension reform from the perspective of the media by examining how news frames of pension reform (i.e., responsibility frame and justice frame) influence how citizens perceive and respond to pension reform. Findings of an online survey-embedded experiment (N = 762) show that citizens who encountered a news frame that emphasized individual or collective responsibility for pensions showed a stronger preference for this type of responsibility; however, this effect was only positive if news media also framed individual or collective responsibility for pensions as just. In fact, exposure to an unjust frame leads to more negative attitudes toward the specific form of responsibility. Regarding individual differences, lower-educated people are more strongly impacted by the responsibility frame than higher-educated people. The strength of framing effects did not differ among citizens of different ages or levels of solidarity, nor between citizens who received the frames via their primary mode of news use and the ones exposed to a less preferred mode of news use. This study shows the importance of news framing in shaping citizens’ attitudes toward pension reforms, suggesting that media coverage matters in the public debate on pensions

A novel genetic variant of Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype 11A discovered in Fiji.

OBJECTIVES: As part of annual cross-sectional Streptococcus pneumoniae carriage surveys in Fiji (2012-2015), we detected pneumococci in over 100 nasopharyngeal swabs that serotyped as '11F-like' by microarray. We examined the genetic basis of this divergence in the 11F-like capsular polysaccharide (cps) locus compared to the reference 11F cps sequence. The impact of this diversity on capsule phenotype, and serotype results using genetic and serologic methods were determined. METHODS: Genomic DNA from representative 11F-like S. pneumoniae isolates obtained from the nasopharynx of Fijian children was extracted and subject to whole genome sequencing. Genetic and phylogenetic analyses were used to identify genetic changes in the cps locus. Capsular phenotypes were evaluated using the Quellung reaction and latex agglutination. RESULTS: Compared to published 11F sequences, the wcwC and wcrL genes of the 11F-like cps locus are phylogenetically divergent, and the gct gene contains a single nucleotide insertion within a homopolymeric region. These changes within the DNA sequence of the 11F-like cps locus have modified the antigenic properties of the capsule, such that 11F-like isolates serotype as 11A by Quellung reaction and latex agglutination. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates the ability of molecular serotyping by microarray to identify genetic variants of S. pneumoniae and highlights the potential for discrepant results between phenotypic and genotypic serotyping methods. We propose that 11F-like isolates are not a new serotype but rather are a novel genetic variant of serotype 11A. These findings have implications for invasive pneumococcal disease surveillance as well as studies investigating vaccine impact