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Research Infrastructure (research + infrastructure)
Selected AbstractsNew roadmap for EU researchASTRONOMY & GEOPHYSICS, Issue 1 2009Article first published online: 16 JAN 200 The European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures has published its updated roadmap for the next 10,20 years, highlighting major international projects. [source] Clinical research networks in diabetes: the evolving role of the research nurseEUROPEAN DIABETES NURSING, Issue 1 2007P Chester PhD Visiting Academic Abstract The importance of evidence-based care for patients with diabetes is well established, and the evidence required to make decisions about patient care is generated through research and audit. The rigours of the research process and the need to enrol large numbers of patient volunteers in a timely manner has meant that most studies are now conducted at multiple sites. Research infrastructure is costly to implement, but is important for successful clinical research projects. By establishing permanent networks this infrastructure can be maintained and built upon. Research nursing has evolved as a new but very important discipline within the nursing profession in recent years and it has been pivotal for the success of many studies. In this article we examine the potential for clinical research networks to facilitate high quality clinical research and in particular the development of the research nurse role. Copyright © 2007 FEND. [source] Teaching for the Test: Validity, Fairness, and Moral ActionEDUCATIONAL MEASUREMENT: ISSUES AND PRACTICE, Issue 3 2003Linda Crocker In response to heightened levels of assessment activity at the K-12 level to meet requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, measurement professionals are called to focus greater attention on four fundamental areas of measurement research and practice: (a) improving the research infrastructure for validation methods involving judgments of test content; (b) expanding the psychometric definition of fairness in achievement testing; (c) developing guidelines for validation studies of test use consequences; and (d) preparing teachers for new roles in instruction and assessment practice. Illustrative strategies for accomplishing these goals are outlined. [source] An Innovative Strategy for Conducting Clinical Research: The Academic Associate ProgramACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 2 2002Judd E. Hollander MD Performance of high-quality clinical research usually requires procurement of substantial funding to support and sustain the research infrastructure. The authors have developed a program to support a research infrastructure that minimizes financial start-up costs and maximizes productivity of clinical-educator faculty with limited protected time. The program integrates clinical research with undergraduate education. The authors report the experience with the academic associate program at two academic institutions. They describe the program, provide measures of program success, and discuss potential methods for other institutions to initiate similar programs. Similar programs can be developed in a variety of outpatient and inpatient settings allowing the performance of high-quality clinical research in a time-efficient and cost-effective manner. [source] Capacity development for agricultural biotechnology in developing countries: an innovation systems view of what it is and how to develop itJOURNAL OF INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT, Issue 5 2005Andy Hall There are divergent views on what capacity development might mean in relation to agricultural biotechnology. The core of this debate is whether this should involve the development of human capital and research infrastructure, or whether it should encompass a wider range of activities which also include developing the capacity to use knowledge productively. This paper uses the innovation systems concept to shed light on this discussion, arguing that it is innovation capacity rather than science and technology capacity that has to be developed. It then presents six examples of different capacity development approaches. It concludes by suggesting that policy needs to take a multidimensional approach to capacity development in line with innovation systems perspective. But it also argues that policy needs to recognise the need to develop the capacity of diversity of innovation systems and that a key part of the capacity development task is to bring about the integration of these different systems at strategic points in time. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Science and technology capacity building and partnership in African agriculture: perspectives on Mali and EgyptJOURNAL OF INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT, Issue 5 2005Seife Ayele Science and technology (S&T) have long been seen as key for development. This paper considers the issue of capacity building in the light of recent reconceptualization of the role of science and technology in development. Reconceptualization suggests that science and technology are better seen as key elements of innovation systems, which are themselves the means of gaining value from knowledge creation; and, that innovation, knowledge and development are tightly knit elements of a system of organisations and institutions that must function coherently for improved knowledge and innovation systems to emerge. Developing such systems requires linkages of many types. The paper describes and discusses the conceptual basis for capacity building interventions, using partnership-based capacity building initiatives in new agricultural technologies from Mali and Egypt. The empirical analysis from both countries shows evidence of research capacity building in the form of recruitment, training of scientific staff and provision of research infrastructure. Unsurprisingly, given the S&T knowledge base, the Malian case illustrates the difficulty of moving beyond basic forms of research capacity building. In Egypt, with significant S&T capacity, there is evidence of organizational and institutional innovation towards broader knowledge, and innovation system development in agri-biotechnology. The role of partnerships, and government as ,systems-builder', are shown to be important. Lessons are drawn from these (and other) cases about the relationship between partnerships, S&T and innovation capacity building. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Experimentally testing the role of foundation species in forests: the Harvard Forest Hemlock Removal ExperimentMETHODS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION, Issue 2 2010Aaron M. Ellison Summary 1.,Problem statement, Foundation species define and structure ecological systems. In forests around the world, foundation tree species are declining due to overexploitation, pests and pathogens. Eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis), a foundation tree species in eastern North America, is threatened by an exotic insect, the hemlock woolly adelgid (Adelges tsugae). The loss of hemlock is hypothesized to result in dramatic changes in assemblages of associated species with cascading impacts on food webs and fluxes of energy and nutrients. We describe the setting, design and analytical framework of the Harvard Forest Hemlock Removal Experiment (HF-HeRE), a multi-hectare, long-term experiment that overcomes many of the major logistical and analytical challenges of studying system-wide consequences of foundation species loss. 2.,Study design, HF-HeRE is a replicated and blocked Before-After-Control-Impact experiment that includes two hemlock removal treatments: girdling all hemlocks to simulate death by adelgid and logging all hemlocks >20 cm diameter and other merchantable trees to simulate pre-emptive salvage operations. These treatments are paired with two control treatments: hemlock controls that are beginning to be infested in 2010 by the adelgid and hardwood controls that represent future conditions of most hemlock stands in eastern North America. 3.,Ongoing measurements and monitoring, Ongoing long-term measurements to quantify the magnitude and direction of forest ecosystem change as hemlock declines include: air and soil temperature, light availability, leaf area and canopy closure; changes in species composition and abundance of the soil seed-bank, understorey vegetation, and soil-dwelling invertebrates; dynamics of coarse woody debris; soil nitrogen availability and net nitrogen mineralization; and soil carbon flux. Short-term or one-time-only measurements include initial tree ages, hemlock-decomposing fungi, wood-boring beetles and throughfall chemistry. Additional within-plot, replicated experiments include effects of ants and litter-dwelling microarthoropods on ecosystem functioning, and responses of salamanders to canopy change. 4.,Future directions and collaborations, HF-HeRE is part of an evolving network of retrospective studies, natural experiments, large manipulations and modelling efforts focused on identifying and understanding the role of single foundation species on ecological processes and dynamics. We invite colleagues from around the world who are interested in exploring complementary questions to take advantage of the HF-HeRE research infrastructure. [source] Gründungen an der Schnittstelle zwischen Wissenschaft und Wirtschaft , die Rolle der HochschulenPERSPEKTIVEN DER WIRTSCHAFTSPOLITIK, Issue 3 2002Frieder Mayer, Krahmer In national innovation systems, universities are not only essential elements of the research infrastructure, but also main players in the field of education and further education. Their specific role in the interplay between knowledge production and market implementation of knowledge via start,ups derives from this fact. This article takes as its theme the university environment which supports and stimulates the start,up processes. It also shows the progress achieved in the German university landscape in recent years on the path towards a culture of entrepreneurship in teaching and research. This is manifested, for example, in the number of start,up chairs, the development of networks to exploit the start,up potential of universities together with regional partners, and in the numbers of spin,offs established. [source] Changing views in Canadian geomorphology: are we seeing the landscape for the processes?THE CANADIAN GEOGRAPHER/LE GEOGRAPHE CANADIEN, Issue 3 2010IAN J. WALKER géomorphologie; révolution quantitative; formes du lit marin; éolien; transport des sédiments; dunes Geomorphology in Canada, as elsewhere, has evolved into an essentially bipartite discipline focusing either on ,process' or broader ,historical' (Quaternary) landscape interpretation. A growing emphasis on process-oriented research that relies increasingly on instrumentation and computational technologies has occurred. Critics of such research note limited applicability for landscape evolution, fashionability of methods and limited societal relevance. Indeed, some say we are not seeing the landscape for the processes. This article discusses the changing nature of geomorphology since the Quantitative Revolution of the 1950s including new advances, recent trends and challenges. Publication trends and recent advances suggest that the discipline is very healthy (following a slump in the early 1990s) and continues to evolve, which may reflect increasing research infrastructure and/or funding opportunities and new publications spotlighting Canadian research. Unfortunately, fundamental (less applied) research is threatened by funding program shifts, changing institutional pressures and a decline in research capacity from retirement attrition, and student recruitment challenges. Three research priorities are recommended: (1) continued fundamental research, (2) more integrated modelling to link micro scale processes to macro scale landform behaviour and(3) improvements in profiling our discipline amongst students and related professionals. L'évolution des perspectives de la géomorphologie canadienne : les processus occultent-ils le paysage? Le caractère bipartite que revêt aujourd'hui la géomorphologie au Canada, comme partout ailleurs dans le monde, marque l'aboutissement de l'évolution d'une discipline axée soit sur les «processus», soit sur une interprétation élargie et «historique» (quaternaire) du paysage. De plus en plus, la recherche porte sur les processus et s'inscrit dans le cadre du développement des technologies d'instrumentation et informatique. Plusieurs ont critiqué cette approche de recherche en soulignant ses limites pour étudier l'évolution des paysages, l'effet de mode des méthodes, et la faiblesse de son apport à la société. Certains vont jusqu'à dire que les processus nous cachent la vue du paysage. Cet article traite du caractère évolutif de la géomorphologie depuis les années 1950 quand les bases de la révolution quantitative ont étéétablies. La discussion porte entre autres sur le progrès des connaissances, les dernières tendances et les défis à relever. Les tendances en matière de publication et l'avancement des connaissances laissent croire que la discipline se porte bien (malgré un ralentissement au début des années 1990) et suit une trajectoire évolutive. Il est possible qu'une telle situation soit le reflet del'accroissement des capacités de recherche et/ou du financement et des nouvelles publications mettant en évidence les résultats de recherches canadiennes. Malheureusement, les modifications apportées aux programmes de subvention, les différentes pressions exercées par les institutions, la baisse de régime en matière de recherche causée par les départs à la retraite, et les défis pour assurer la relève universitaire constituent une menace pour la recherche fondamentale (c'est-à-dire moins appliquée). C'est dans cette foulée que trois chantiers de recherche sont proposés : (1) poursuivre la recherche fondamentale, (2) élaborer des modèles plus intégrés qui conjuguent les processus à l'échelle micro et les comportements des formes de relief, et (3) procéder à des améliorations du profilage des étudiants et des professionnels apparentés. [source] Partnering for Greater Success: Local Stakeholders and Research in Tropical Biology and ConservationBIOTROPICA, Issue 5 2009Karen A. Kainer ABSTRACT Local communities are important stakeholders in resource management and conservation efforts, particularly in the developing world. Although evidence is mixed in suggesting that these resident stakeholders are optimal forest stewards, it is highly unlikely that large tracts of tropical forests will be conserved without engaging local people who depend on them daily for their livelihoods. Stakeholders, who reside in biodiverse ecosystems like tropical forests, are the largest direct users and ultimate decision-makers of forest fate, can be important investors in conservation, harbor local ecological knowledge that complements Western science and frequently have long-term legitimate claims on lands where they reside. Research partnerships with local stakeholders can increase research relevance, enhance knowledge exchange and result in greater conservation success. Different phases of the research cycle present distinct opportunities for partnership, with flexibility in timing, approaches and strategies depending on researcher and local stakeholder needs and interests. Despite being the last step in the research process, dissemination of results can be the best starting point for researchers interested in experimenting with local stakeholder engagement. Still, tropical biologists might not choose to partner with local people because of lack of institutional rewards, insufficient training in stakeholder engagement, insecure research infrastructure in community settings, and time and funding limitations. Although not appropriate in all cases and despite significant challenges, some biological scientists and research institutions have successfully engaged local stakeholders in the research process, proving mutually beneficial for investigators and local people alike and resulting in important innovations in tropical biology and conservation. [source] Alignment of Emergency Medicine Research Efforts with Clinical and Translational Science AwardsACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 7 2008Chadwick D. Miller MD Abstract The Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA) represent a major new funding pathway for health science investigators seeking National Institutes of Health (NIH) funds. This new pathway provides institutional-level support for clinical and translational research and is not tied to one organ system or disease process, fitting well with emergency medicine (EM) research needs. These awards open unique opportunities for advancing EM research. The CTSA mechanism provides institutional support from the NIH to promote both clinical and translational science. Of the 60 expected awards, 38 sites are currently funded. EM investigators can benefit the institutions applying for these awards and simultaneously gain from involvement. Some opportunities for participation provided by the CTSA include research training programs, joining multidisciplinary research teams, seed grant funding, and use of the CTSA-developed research infrastructure. Involvement of EM can benefit institutions by enhancing acute care research collaboration both within and among institutions. Emergency medicine researchers at institutions either planning to submit a CTSA application or with funded CTSA grants are encouraged to become actively involved in CTSA-related research programs. [source] | ||||||||||||||||