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Existing Database (existing + database)
Selected AbstractsThe readiness is all The degree level qualifications and preparedness of initial teacher trainees in EnglishENGLISH IN EDUCATION, Issue 2 2010Julie Blake Abstract This article is the first of two reporting research concerned with the profile of degree level qualifications of initial teacher trainees who start Postgraduate Certificate of Education (PGCE) Secondary English courses. In a context where there is no existing database of such information, the researchers sought to establish the patterns in this profile and collate a summary of Initial Teacher Education (ITE) tutors' perceptions about the level of subject knowledge preparedness of students with different degree level qualifications. Following from this, the enquiry was also interested in the ways that PGCE institutions support students with different subject knowledge development needs. The article that follows below treats the issue of degree qualifications and the PGCE selection process in the context of recent changes to subject English. The evidence suggests patterned but divergent practices with an overall trend of preference for prior qualifications in English Literature despite significant alterations in the study of English since 1980. PGCE courses surveyed attract many more applicants than there were places and tutors exercise considerable discretion in admissions practices which are not always made transparent by published policies and rationales, including those made available to prospective applicants. The review of the literature showed little published discourse on this topic to date. [source] The influence of scale and geography on relationships between stream community composition and landscape variables: description and predictionFRESHWATER BIOLOGY, Issue 5 2003Colin R. Townsend SUMMARY 1.,We analysed an existing database of macroinvertebrates and fish in the context of a newly established geographical information system (GIS) of physical features to determine the relationships between stream community composition and physical factors measured at three landscape scales , catchment, reach and bedform. Both an exploratory (concordance analysis) and a predictive (ausrivas) approach were used. 2.,The environmental variables that most successfully accounted for variation in macroinvertebrate assemblages were mainly ,natural' and at the catchment-scale (relief ratio, basin diameter, etc.) but the human-induced physical setting of percentage of pasture in the riparian zone was also influential. For fish, ,natural' variables were also dominant, but these were mostly at the bedform or reach scales and land use featured strongly. 3.,Geographic location accounted for some of the variation in invertebrate assemblages, partly because geography and influential conditions/resources are correlated but also because different species may have evolved in different places and have not colonised every ,ecologically appropriate' location. Geographic location was not influential in accounting for variation in assemblages of strongly flying invertebrates, supporting the hypothesis that organisms having high dispersal potential can be expected to break down geographic barriers more readily than those with poor dispersal powers. In accord with what is known about the local evolution and restricted distributions of native and exotic species, history (reflected in geography) appeared to account for some variation in fish assemblages. 4.,Given their different mathematical bases, the fact that exploratory and predictive analyses yielded similar results provides added confidence to our conclusions. [source] Vegetation gradients in Atlantic Europe: the use of existing phytosociological data in preliminary investigations on the potential effects of climate change on British vegetationGLOBAL ECOLOGY, Issue 3 2000J. C. Duckworth Abstract 1This paper aims to demonstrate the use of available vegetation data from the phytosociological literature in preliminary analyses to generate hypotheses regarding vegetation and climate change. 2Data for over 3000 samples of calcareous grassland, mesotrophic grassland, heath and woodland vegetation were taken from the literature for a region in the west of Atlantic Europe and subjected to ordination by detrended correspondence analysis in order to identify the main gradients present. 3Climate data were obtained at a resolution of 0.5° from an existing database. The relationship between vegetation composition and climate was investigated by the correlation of the mean scores for the first two ordination axes for each 0.5° cell with the climate and location variables. 4The ordinations resulted in clear geographical gradients for calcareous grasslands, heaths and woodlands but not for mesotrophic grasslands. Significant correlations were shown between some of the vegetation gradients and the climate variables, with the strongest relationships occurring between the calcareous grassland gradients and July temperature, latitude and oceanicity. Some of the vegetation gradients were also inferred to reflect edaphic factors, management and vegetation history. 5Those gradients that were related to temperature were hypothesized to reflect the influence of a progressively warmer climate on species composition, providing a baseline for further studies on the influence of climate change on species composition. 6The validity of the literature data was assessed by the collection of an original set of field data for calcareous grasslands and the subsequent ordination of a dataset containing samples from both the literature and the field. The considerable overlap between the samples from the literature and the field suggest that literature data can be used, despite certain limitations. Such preliminary analyses, using readily available data, can thus achieve useful results, thereby saving lengthy and costly field visits. [source] Taxonomic homogenization and differentiation across Southern Ocean Islands differ among insects and vascular plantsJOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY, Issue 2 2010Justine D. Shaw Abstract Aim, To investigate taxonomic homogenization and/or differentiation of insect and vascular plant assemblages across the Southern Ocean Islands (SOI), and how they differ with changing spatial extent and taxonomic resolution. Location, Twenty-two islands located across the Southern Ocean, further subdivided into five island biogeographical provinces. These islands are used because comprehensive data on both indigenous and non-indigenous insect and plant species are available. Methods, An existing database was updated, using newly published species records, identifying the indigenous and non-indigenous insect and vascular plant species recorded for each island. Homogenization and differentiation were measured using Jaccard's index (JI) of similarity for assemblages across all islands on a pairwise basis, and for island pairs within each of the biogeographical provinces. The effects of taxonomic resolution (species, genus, family) and distance on levels of homogenization or differentiation were examined. To explore further the patterns of similarity among islands for each of the taxa and groupings (indigenous and non-indigenous), islands were clustered based on JI similarity matrices and using group averaging. Results, Across the SOI, insect assemblages have become homogenized (0.7% increase in similarity at species level) while plant assemblages have become differentiated at genus and species levels. Homogenization was recorded only when pairwise distances among islands exceeded 3000 km for insect assemblages, but distances had to exceed 10,000 km for plant assemblages. Widely distributed non-indigenous plant species tend to have wider distributions across the SOI than do their insect counterparts, and this is also true of the indigenous species. Main conclusions, Insect assemblages across the SOI have become homogenized as a consequence of the establishment of non-indigenous species, while plant assemblages have become more differentiated. The likely reason is that indigenous plant assemblages are more similar across the SOI than are insect assemblages, which show greater regionalization. Thus, although a suite of widespread, typically European, weedy, non-indigenous plant species has established on many islands, the outcome has largely been differentiation. Because further introductions of insects and vascular plants are probable as climates warm across the region, the patterns documented here are likely to change through time. [source] Cross-sectional studies in prescribing researchJOURNAL OF CLINICAL PHARMACY & THERAPEUTICS, Issue 6 2001J. Jesson BSc PhD A cross-sectional study aims to describe the overall picture of a phenomenon, a situational problem, an attitude or an issue, by asking a cross-section of a given population at one specified moment in time. This paper describes the key features of the cross-sectional survey method. It begins by highlighting the main principles of the method, then discusses stages in the research process, drawing on two surveys of primary care pharmacists to illustrate some salient points about planning, sampling frames, definition and conceptual issues, research instrument design and response rates. Four constraints in prescribing studies were noted. First the newness of the subject meant a low basis of existing knowledge to design a questionnaire. Second, there was no public existing database for the sampling frame, so a pragmatic sampling exercise was used. Third, the definition of a Primary Care Pharmacist (PCP) [in full] and respondents recognition of that name and identification with the new role limited the response. Fourth, a growing problem for all surveys, but particularly with pharmacists and general practitioners (GP) [in full] is the growing danger of survey fatigue, which has a negative impact on response levels. [source] Consistent database sampling as a database prototyping approachJOURNAL OF SOFTWARE MAINTENANCE AND EVOLUTION: RESEARCH AND PRACTICE, Issue 6 2002Jesús Bisbal Abstract Requirements elicitation has been reported to be the stage of software development when errors have the most expensive consequences. Users usually find it difficult to articulate a consistent and complete set of requirements at the beginning of a development project. Prototyping is considered a powerful technique to ease this problem by exposing a partial implementation of the software system to the user, who can then identify required modifications. When prototyping data-intensive applications a so-called prototype database is needed. This paper investigates how a prototype database can be built. Two different approaches are analysed, namely test databases and sample databases; the former populates the resulting database with synthetic values, while the latter uses data values from an existing database. The application areas that require prototype databases, in addition to requirements analysis, are also identified. The paper reports on existing research into the construction of both types of prototype databases, and indicates to which type of application area each is best suited. This paper advocates for the use of sample databases when an operational database is available, as is commonly the case in software maintenance and evolution. Domain-relevant data values and integrity constraints will produce a prototype database which will support the information system development process better than synthetic data. The process of extracting a sample database is also investigated. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Physical properties of meteorites,Applications in space missions to asteroidsMETEORITICS & PLANETARY SCIENCE, Issue 6 2008T. KOHOUT However, more detailed observations indicate that differences exist in composition between asteroids and meteorites resulting in difficulties when searching for meteorite-asteroid match. We show that among other physical parameters the magnetic susceptibility of an asteroid can be determined remotely from the magnetic induction by solar wind using an orbiting spacecraft or directly using the AC coil on the lander, or it can be measured in samples returned to the laboratory. The shape corrected value of the true magnetic susceptibility of an asteroid can be compared to those of meteorites in the existing database, allowing closer match between asteroids and meteorites. The database of physical properties contains over 700 samples and was recently enlarged with measurements of meteorites in European museums using mobile laboratory facility. [source] Etanercept combined with methotrexate for high-need psoriasisBRITISH JOURNAL OF DERMATOLOGY, Issue 2 2008R.J.B. Driessen Summary Background, For some high-need psoriatic patients, the efficacy of etanercept monotherapy is insufficient. In these cases it might be indicated to combine etanercept with other conventional treatments. Objectives, To provide daily practice safety and efficacy data for etanercept and methotrexate combination therapy. Methods, Data were extracted from an existing database, which contains prospective safety and efficacy data of all patients who were treated with etanercept in clinical practice. A case was defined as a patient using etanercept and methotrexate simultaneously for an indefinite period during follow-up. For all cases, baseline data, Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) scores, adverse events and laboratory values were investigated. Furthermore, the influence of introduction and discontinuation of methotrexate on these parameters was analysed. Results, Fourteen patients with simultaneous use of etanercept and methotrexate were selected. In six patients, methotrexate was introduced after etanercept to avoid further psoriasis deterioration, which resulted in an improvement of psoriasis in four of these patients. Eight patients were on methotrexate therapy before start of etanercept. Discontinuation of methotrexate in six of these patients resulted in a decrease in PASI improvement in five patients. Etanercept combined with methotrexate was well tolerated, and only mild adverse events were reported. No clinically significant changes in laboratory parameters occurred. Conclusions, Results show that combining etanercept with methotrexate is reasonable when efficacy of etanercept monotherapy is insufficient, or when rapid deterioration of psoriasis after abrupt discontinuation of methotrexate is expected. Laboratory values and adverse events were not different from what would have been expected when using methotrexate alone. [source] | |||||||||||||