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Many Challenges (many + challenge)
Selected AbstractsQuality-adjusted life years: how useful in medico economic studiesFUNDAMENTAL & CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY, Issue 6 2005Carmen A. Brauer Abstract Cost-effectiveness analysis has evolved as a practical response to the need to allocate limited resources for health care. It can be used to compare interventions whose effects on health are different if the measure of effectiveness captures all the important health dimensions of the effects of the interventions. Using the quality-adjusted life year (QALY) as the unit of effectiveness attempts to approach this ideal and is currently the approach recommended by many consensus groups. Conventional QALYs represent time spend in a series of "quality-weighted" health states, where the quality weights reflect the desirability of living in the state. Many challenges arise when preferences are incorporated into an economic analysis. The purpose of this paper is to highlight some of the issues surrounding the use of QALYs and to encourage researchers to present their methodology in a clear and transparent way. [source] Seine: a dynamic geometry-based shared-space interaction framework for parallel scientific applicationsCONCURRENCY AND COMPUTATION: PRACTICE & EXPERIENCE, Issue 15 2006L. Zhang Abstract While large-scale parallel/distributed simulations are rapidly becoming critical research modalities in academia and industry, their efficient and scalable implementations continue to present many challenges. A key challenge is that the dynamic and complex communication/coordination required by these applications (dependent on the state of the phenomenon being modeled) are determined by the specific numerical formulation, the domain decomposition and/or sub-domain refinement algorithms used, etc. and are known only at runtime. This paper presents Seine, a dynamic geometry-based shared-space interaction framework for scientific applications. The framework provides the flexibility of shared-space-based models and supports extremely dynamic communication/coordination patterns, while still enabling scalable implementations. The design and prototype implementation of Seine are presented. Seine complements and can be used in conjunction with existing parallel programming systems such as MPI and OpenMP. An experimental evaluation using an adaptive multi-block oil-reservoir simulation is used to demonstrate the performance and scalability of applications using Seine. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Community mediation: Reflections on a quarter century of practiceCONFLICT RESOLUTION QUARTERLY, Issue 4 2000Scott Bradley It is fitting that this issue of Mediation Quarterly, one of the last before it transforms into a joint publication of confederating organizations, is devoted to community mediation. During the past twenty-five years, community mediation has provided much of the momentum for the growth and diversity of the alternative dispute resolution movement in the United States. At the same time, it has faced many challenges as the larger dispute resolution field grows and evolves. How community mediation responds to these challenges will shape its role and place for the next generation. In this issue, we have asked some key leaders and practitioners in the field to reflect on the development of community mediation and the challenges as we move into another century of practice. [source] Output-only structural identification in time domain: Numerical and experimental studiesEARTHQUAKE ENGINEERING AND STRUCTURAL DYNAMICS, Issue 4 2008M. J. Perry Abstract By identifying changes in stiffness parameters, structural damage can be detected and monitored. Although considerable progress has been made in this research area, many challenges remain in achieving robust structural identification based on incomplete and noisy measurement signals. The identification task is made even more difficult if measurement of input force is to be eliminated. To this end, an output-only structural identification strategy is proposed to identify unknown stiffness and damping parameters. A non-classical approach based on genetic algorithms (GAs) is adopted. The proposed strategy makes use of the recently developed GA-based method of search space reduction, which has shown to be able to accurately and reliably identify structural parameters from measured input and output signals. By modifying the numerical integration scheme, input can be computed as the parameter identification task is in progress, thereby eliminating the need to measure forces. Numerical and experimental results demonstrate the power of the strategy in accurate and efficient identification of structural parameters and damage using only incomplete acceleration measurements. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Integrating Research into Clinical Practice: Development of an Echocardiography Research UnitECHOCARDIOGRAPHY, Issue 6 2009R.D.C.S., Tammy M. Green B.A. Introducing a research program into an echocardiography clinical practice can pose many challenges. Some initial factors to consider are the possible effects on the current clinical schedule and the equipment and personnel resources required to support the research projects. More importantly, how can an organization successfully complete reliable and accurate research projects? Here, we describe our experience with establishing an echocardiography research center within our clinical echocardiography practice. In addition, we identify key staff roles, highlight our current research practice methods, and suggest essential components that may prove advantageous when incorporating echocardiography research into a clinical practice. (ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY, Volume 26, July 2009) [source] An exploratory investigation of the experiences of partners living with people who have bulimia nervosaEUROPEAN EATING DISORDERS REVIEW, Issue 6 2006Katherine Huke Abstract Objective This study aimed to explore partners' experiences of living as a couple with someone with bulimia nervosa. Method Transcripts of eight exploratory interviews with partners were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Results Five superordinate themes emerged: (1) Living with the secrecy and deception; (2) Struggling to understand and find reasons; (3) Discovering your powerlessness; (4) ,It's like growing to live with it'; (5) Experiencing strengths and strains in the relationship. Discussion Living with someone with bulimia presents many challenges for partners. They struggle to understand what is happening, can find the secrecy difficult to live with, and are often left feeling powerless. However, partners also look to find ways of accepting and living with the bulimia. It is suggested that partners could be offered opportunities to access support, and that their perspectives could be a useful resource for therapeutic interventions. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and Eating Disorders Association. [source] Enhanced Photocatalytic Activity using Layer-by-Layer Electrospun Constructs for Water RemediationADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS, Issue 15 2010Jung Ah Lee Abstract Endocrine disruptors such as bisphenol A (BPA) are environmental pollutants that interfere with the body's endocrine system because of their structural similarity to natural and synthetic hormones. Due to their strong oxidizing potential to decompose such organic pollutants, colloidal metal oxide photocatalysts have attracted increasing attention for water detoxification. However, achieving both long-term physical stability and high efficiency simultaneously with such photocatalytic systems poses many challenges. Here a layer-by-layer (LbL) deposition approach is reported for immobilizing TiO2 nanoparticles (NPs) on a porous support while maintaining a high catalytic efficiency for photochemical decomposition of BPA. Anatase TiO2 NPs ,7,nm in diameter self-assemble in consecutive layers with positively charged polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxanes on a high surface area, porous electrospun polymer fiber mesh. The TiO2 LbL nanofibers decompose approximately 2.2,mg BPA per mg of TiO2 in 40,h of illumination (AM 1.5G illumination), maintaining first-order kinetics with a rate constant (k) of 0.15,h,1 for over 40,h. Although the colloidal TiO2 NPs initially show significantly higher photocatalytic activity (k,,,0.84,h,1), the rate constant drops to k,,,0.07,h,1 after 4,h of operation, seemingly due to particle agglomeration. In the BPA solution treated with the multilayered TiO2 nanofibers for 40,h, the estrogenic activity, based on human breast cancer cell proliferation, is significantly lower than that in the BPA solution treated with colloidal TiO2 NPs under the same conditions. This study demonstrates that water-based, electrostatic LbL deposition effectively immobilizes and stabilizes TiO2 NPs on electrospun polymer nanofibers for efficient extended photochemical water remediation. [source] Regulation of whole bacterial pathogen transcription within infected hostsFEMS MICROBIOLOGY REVIEWS, Issue 3 2008My-Van La Abstract DNA microarrays are a powerful and promising approach to gain a detailed understanding of the bacterial response and the molecular cross-talk that can occur as a consequence of host,pathogen interactions. However, published studies mainly describe the host response to infection. Analysis of bacterial gene regulation in the course of infection has confronted many challenges. This review summarizes the different strategies used over the last few years to investigate, at the genomic scale, and using microarrays, the alterations in the bacterial transcriptome in response to interactions with host cells. Thirty-seven studies involving 19 different bacterial pathogens were compiled and analyzed. Our in silico comparison of the transcription profiles of bacteria grown in broth or in contact with eukaryotic cells revealed some features commonly observed when bacteria interact with host cells, including stringent response and cell surface remodeling. [source] Physical palpation methods pose many challenges in inter-examiner reliabilityFOCUS ON ALTERNATIVE AND COMPLEMENTARY THERAPIES AN EVIDENCE-BASED APPROACH, Issue 1 2002Article first published online: 14 JUN 2010 [source] Fluvial Geomorphology and River ManagementGEOGRAPHICAL RESEARCH, Issue 3 2000I. Douglas Australian river landscapes offer many challenges for management. Much Australian river research is novel, but practical concerns have always had an influence on the research agenda. Australia's distinctive contributions to fluvial geomorphology include recognition of the great age of many fluvially eroded landscapes; understanding complex levee, terrace and valley fill sequences; analysing the impacts of rare major floods; interpreting the effects of impoundment, mining and urbanisation; and understanding the great anastomosing inland river systems. River restoration is now a major theme in the literature of river engineering, fluvial geomorphology and landscape design. Great achievements are occurring in geo-ecological river management and engineering. Changing people's thinking is becoming at least as important as gaining new scientific knowledge. The existing understanding needs to be more widely shared and enhanced by greater involvement with Asian countries where river management issues daily affect the lives of millions of people. [source] Rules of engagement in turbulent times: How Verizon Wireless uses a robust HR portal for employee communicationGLOBAL BUSINESS AND ORGANIZATIONAL EXCELLENCE, Issue 4 2009Antonio Poglianich Turbulent times such as these will test the resilience of many companies' communication capabilities, particularly for rapid response with consistent messaging to focus and engage a wary and distracted workforce on the many challenges ahead. The answer may be an HR portal like that at Verizon Wireless, where it is a core part of an engagement strategy that is the envy of the industry. The article discusses the importance of engagement for organizational and business performance; the role communication can play in driving engagement; and five principles for accomplishing this. The article goes on to explore how Verizon Wireless has developed and positioned its HR portal for rapid as well as sustained messaging, personalization, and self-service tools that all help define the employee experience. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] Aligned, Ultralong Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes: From Synthesis, Sorting, to Electronic DevicesADVANCED MATERIALS, Issue 21 2010Zhongfan Liu Abstract Aligned, ultralong single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) represent attractive building blocks for nanoelectronics. The structural uniformity along their tube axis and well-ordered two-dimensional architectures on wafer surfaces may provide a straightforward platform for fabricating high-performance SWNT-based integrated circuits. On the way towards future nanoelectronic devices, many challenges for such a specific system also exist. This Review summarizes the recent advances in the synthesis, identification and sorting, transfer printing and manipulation, device fabrication and integration of aligned, ultralong SWNTs in detail together with discussion on their major challenges and opportunities for their practical application. [source] In vivo Engineering of Tissues: Biological Considerations, Challenges, Strategies, and Future DirectionsADVANCED MATERIALS, Issue 32-33 2009V. Prasad Shastri Abstract Moving forward materials-based regenerative medicine faces many challenges to ensure clinical success. Many of these challenges lie at the interface of molecular/structural biology and materials science. This review discusses this issue from a biological and material view-point, highlighting key biological processes and variables that can impact the repair processes. From a materials design stand point, developing materials that can promote healing over scarring is the key. All indicators suggest that polymeric materials are most well-suited for de novo engineering of tissues. In addition to biomolecular signals that are involved in controlling the fate of cells and neo-tissue morphogenesis at the site of implantation, this review also discusses recent advances in design of highly functional injectable biomaterials, that show promise in controlling local biological processes. [source] An ethnographic study of three mental health triage programsINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MENTAL HEALTH NURSING, Issue 3 2004Margaret Grigg ABSTRACT:,,Triage processes are commonly used to manage the interface between demand for, and supply of, health services. This dimension of service provision is particularly pertinent for mental health services in Australia, where demand outweighs services available. This paper draws on the experiences of using participant observation to explore mental health triage processes. Findings highlight the complexities of the researcher role and benefits of using an ethnographic approach to explore mental health triage patterns. Insider participant observation brings many challenges but also, in this study, enabled the researcher to uncover some roles and processes underpinning triage decisions in mental health services. [source] Transnational Competence in an Emergent EpochINTERNATIONAL STUDIES PERSPECTIVES, Issue 2 2002Peter H. Koehn The article elaborates a framework for understanding the relevance of transnational competence to the dynamics that mark the transformations of our time. Nongovernmental stakeholders interacting through dense civil-society networks that permeate domestic-foreign frontiers bear increasing responsibility for the course of events. Based on linked interests, interorganizational knowledge generation and aggregation, partnerships, and interpersonal/intercultural interactions, they are deeply involved in addressing the many challenges posed by an ever more interdependent world. Transnational competence lubricates transterritorial networks and projects. Here, the authors extend earlier work that posited a worldwide skill revolution both by developing explicit dimensions of transnational competence and by introducing a behavioral component. The new framework provides analytical groundwork for explaining why some people, groups, and networks are more effective than others in forging meaningful transnational solidarities, negotiating and benefiting from the intensifying experience of globalization, and waging successful transnational campaigns. The article also probes how the spread of transnational competence is being facilitated by global migration and transmigration trends. The final section explores the governance implications of expanding transnational competency for the emergent epoch. [source] Nursing profession in Iran: An overview of opportunities and challengesJAPAN JOURNAL OF NURSING SCIENCE, Issue 1 2010Zahra FARSI Abstract Aim:, Iran's health-care system has witnessed profound changes in the last decades. Despite its progress, the system has currently faced many challenges in one of the important subsystems, nursing. The present review article aimed to present an overview of the opportunities and challenges of the Iranian nursing system, based on recent literature. Methods:, A broad search of the English and Persian-language literature was carried out, incorporating both electronic and manual components from 1999 to 2009. The results of the investigations among the searched literature are summarized. Results:, The major challenges are nursing shortages, job dissatisfaction, poor social position of nurses, the gap between theory and practice, lack of community-based nursing care, lack of an appropriate student recruiting system, and shortages in the nursing educational curriculums. Conclusion:, The authors believe that media, political and public support play a pivotal role in improving the image of nursing in society, increasing motivation among Iranian nurses, and promoting the sociocultural climate and the welfare of nurses, which will result in higher levels of quality of care as well as greater patient satisfaction. [source] Computerized Physician Order Entry with Clinical Decision Support in the Long-Term Care Setting: Insights from the Baycrest Centre for Geriatric CareJOURNAL OF AMERICAN GERIATRICS SOCIETY, Issue 10 2005Paula A. Rochon MD Although computerized physician order entry (CPOE) has been successfully implemented in many acute care hospitals, few descriptions of its use in the long-term care (LTC) setting are available. This report describes the experiences of one LTC facility in developing and implementing a CPOE system with clinical decision support (CDS). Even when a facility has the necessary resources and "institutional will," many challenges are associated with the implementation of this application. The system was designed to meet the needs of healthcare providers in the LTC setting, in particular by informing prescribing decisions, reducing the frequency of prescribing and monitoring errors, and reducing adverse drug event rates. Based on experience adopting this technology early, 10 insights are offered that it is hoped will assist others who are considering the implementation of CPOE systems with CDS in the LTC setting. [source] Current issues with fish and fisheries: editor's overview and introductionJOURNAL OF APPLIED ECOLOGY, Issue 2 2003S. J. Ormerod Summary 1.,By any measure, fishes are among the world's most important natural resources. Annual exploitation from wild populations exceeds 90 million tonnes, and fish supply over 15% of global protein needs as part of total annual trade exceeding $US 55 billion. Additionally, with over 25 000 known species, the biodiversity and ecological roles of fishes are being increasingly recognised in aquatic conservation, ecosystem management, restoration and aquatic environmental regulation. 2.,At the same time, substantial management problems now affect the production, exploitable stocks, global diversity, trophic structure, habitat quality and local composition of fish communities. 3.,In marine systems, key issues include the direct effects of exploitation on fish, habitats and other organisms, while habitat or water quality problems arise also from the atmospheric, terrestrial and coastal environments to which marine systems are linked. In freshwaters, flow regulation and obstruction by dams, fragmentation, catchment management, pollution, habitat alterations, exotic fish introductions and nursery-reared fish are widespread issues. 4.,Management responses to the problems of fish and fisheries include aquatic reserves in both marine and freshwater habitats, and their effectiveness is now being evaluated. Policies on marine exploitation increasingly emphasise fishes as integral components of aquatic ecosystems rather than individually exploitable stocks, but the rationalisation of fishing pressures presents many challenges. In Europe, North America and elsewhere, policies on freshwaters encourage habitat protection, integrated watershed management and restoration, but pressures on water resources will cause continued change. All these management approaches require development and evaluation, and will benefit from a perspective of ecological understanding with ecologists fully involved. 5.,Synthesis and applications. Although making a small contribution to the Journal of Applied Ecology in the past, leading work on aquatic problems and fish-related themes appear increasingly in this and other mainstream ecology journals. As this special profile of five papers shows, significant contributions arise on diverse issues that here include the benefit of aquatic reserves, river restoration for fish, the accumulation of contaminants, interactions with predators, and the fitness of salmonids from nurseries. This overview outlines the current context in which papers on the applied ecology of fish and fisheries are emerging, and it identifies scope for further contributions. [source] Use of ionic liquids for the efficient utilization of lignocellulosic materialsJOURNAL OF CHEMICAL TECHNOLOGY & BIOTECHNOLOGY, Issue 6 2008Shengdong Zhu Abstract Lignocellulosic materials are the most abundant renewable resource in the world and their efficient utilization provides a practical route to maintain social sustainable development. Application of ionic liquids has opened new avenues for the efficient utilization of lignocellulosic materials in such areas as fractionation, preparation of cellulose composites and derivatives, analysis, and removal of pollutants. However, there are still many challenges in putting these potential applications into practical use, for example, the high price of ionic liquids and lack of basic physico-chemical and toxicological data. Further research and financial support are required to address such challenges. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry [source] Human embryonic stem cells and liver diseases: From basic research to future clinical applicationJOURNAL OF DIGESTIVE DISEASES, Issue 1 2008Zheng WANG Human embryonic stem cells (hESC) provide access to the earliest stages of human development and because of their high proliferation capability, pluripotency and low immunogenicity may serve as a potential source of specialized cells for regenerative medicine. hESC-derived hepatocyte-like cells exhibit characteristic hepatocyte morphology, express hepatocyte markers and are capable of executing a range of hepatocyte functions. However, there are many challenges and obstacles to be overcome before the use of hESC and hESC-derived hepatocyte-like cells in clinical practice can be realized. Here, we highlight some of the recent efforts in this area, in hope of providing insights toward this complex yet important area of therapeutical modality for treating patients with liver disease. [source] MPP programs emerging around the world19JOURNAL OF POLICY ANALYSIS AND MANAGEMENT, Issue 1 2008Iris Geva-May This paper examines public policy and management programs in Canada, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand, and makes comparisons with similar programs in the United States. Our study of public policy programs shows that there are many challenges ahead in terms of making good decisions on the form and content of programs that will add value to governments and citizens. Appropriate choices in terms of program design and pedagogy will reflect different economic, social, environmental, and cultural influences and will be shaped by history, values, and the roles of public policy and management professionals within a particular governmental context. [source] Preservice elementary teachers' views of their students' prior knowledge of scienceJOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN SCIENCE TEACHING, Issue 4 2008Valerie K. Otero Abstract Pre-service teachers face many challenges as they learn to teach in ways that are different from their own educational experiences. Pre-service teachers often enter teacher education courses with pre-conceptions about teaching and learning that may or may not be consistent with contemporary learning theory. To build on preservice teachers' prior knowledge, we need to identify the types of views they have when entering teacher education courses and the views they develop throughout these courses. The study reported here focuses specifically on preservice teachers' views of their own students' prior knowledge and the implications these views have on their understanding of the formative assessment process. Sixty-one preservice teachers were studied from three sections of a science methods course. Results indicate that preservice teachers exhibited a limited number of views about students' prior knowledge. These views tended to privilege either academic or experience-based concepts for different aspects of formative assessment, in contrast to contemporary perspectives on teaching for understanding. Rather than considering these views as misconceptions, it is argued that it is more useful to consider them as resources for further development of a more flexible concept of formative assessment. Four common views are discussed in detail and applied to science teacher education. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 45: 497,523, 2008 [source] Using School Staff to Establish a Preventive Network of Care to Improve Elementary School Students' Control of AsthmaJOURNAL OF SCHOOL HEALTH, Issue 6 2006Jean-Marie Bruzzese To address these problems, Columbia University and the New York City Department of Education and the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene undertook a randomized controlled trial to test the efficacy of a comprehensive school-based asthma program. In this intervention, school nurses were trained to facilitate the establishment of a preventive network of care for children with asthma by coordinating communications and fostering relationships between families, PCPs, and school personnel. PCPs also received training regarding asthma management. There was limited support for this model. While case detection helped nurses identify additional students with asthma and nurses increased the amount of time spent on asthma-related tasks, PCPs did not change their medical management of asthma. Few improvements in health outcomes were achieved. Relative to controls, 12-months posttest intervention students had a reduction in activity limitations due to asthma (,35% vs ,9%, p < .05) and days with symptoms (26% vs 39%, p = .06). The intervention had no impact on the use of urgent health care services, school attendance, or caregiver's quality of life. There were also no improvements at 24-months postintervention. We faced many challenges related to case detection, training, and implementing preventive care activities, which may have hindered our success. We present these challenges, describe how we coped with them, and discuss the lessons we learned. (J Sch Health. 2006;76(6):307-312) [source] Modelling price paths in on-line auctions: smoothing sparse and unevenly sampled curves by using semiparametric mixed modelsJOURNAL OF THE ROYAL STATISTICAL SOCIETY: SERIES C (APPLIED STATISTICS), Issue 2 2008Florian Reithinger Summary., On-line auctions pose many challenges for the empirical researcher, one of which is the effective and reliable modelling of price paths. We propose a novel way of modelling price paths in eBay's on-line auctions by using functional data analysis. One of the practical challenges is that the functional objects are sampled only very sparsely and unevenly. Most approaches rely on smoothing to recover the underlying functional object from the data, which can be difficult if the data are irregularly distributed. We present a new approach that can overcome this challenge. The approach is based on the ideas of mixed models. Specifically, we propose a semiparametric mixed model with boosting to recover the functional object. As well as being able to handle sparse and unevenly distributed data, the model also results in conceptually more meaningful functional objects. In particular, we motivate our method within the framework of eBay's on-line auctions. On-line auctions produce monotonic increasing price curves that are often correlated across auctions. The semiparametric mixed model accounts for this correlation in a parsimonious way. It also manages to capture the underlying monotonic trend in the data without imposing model constraints. Our application shows that the resulting functional objects are conceptually more appealing. Moreover, when used to forecast the outcome of an on-line auction, our approach also results in more accurate price predictions compared with standard approaches. We illustrate our model on a set of 183 closed auctions for Palm M515 personal digital assistants. [source] Skeletal tissue engineering using embryonic stem cellsJOURNAL OF TISSUE ENGINEERING AND REGENERATIVE MEDICINE, Issue 3 2010Jojanneke M. Jukes Abstract Various cell types have been investigated as candidate cell sources for cartilage and bone tissue engineering. In this review, we focused on chondrogenic and osteogenic differentiation of mouse and human embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and their potential in cartilage and bone tissue engineering. A decade ago, mouse ESCs were first used as a model to study cartilage and bone development and essential genes, factors and conditions for chondrogenesis and osteogenesis were unravelled. This knowledge, combined with data from the differentiation of adult stem cells, led to successful chondrogenic and osteogenic differentiation of mouse ESCs and later also human ESCs. Next, researchers focused on the use of ESCs for skeletal tissue engineering. Cartilage and bone tissue was formed in vivo using ESCs. However, the amount, homogeneity and stability of the cartilage and bone formed were still insufficient for clinical application. The current protocols require improvement not only in differentiation efficiency but also in ESC-specific hurdles, such as tumourigenicity and immunorejection. In addition, some of the general tissue engineering challenges, such as cell seeding and nutrient limitation in larger constructs, will also apply for ESCs. In conclusion, there are still many challenges, but there is potential for ESCs in skeletal tissue engineering. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] How Many Brains Does It Take to Build a New Light: Knowledge Management Challenges of a Transdisciplinary ProjectMIND, BRAIN, AND EDUCATION, Issue 1 2009Bruno Della Chiesa ABSTRACT, The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's (OECD) Center for Educational Research and Innovation (CERI) carried out the Learning Sciences and Brain Research project (1999,2007) to investigate how neuroscience research can inform education policy and practice. This transdisciplinary project brought many challenges. Within the political community, participation in the project varied, with some countries resisting approval of the project altogether, in the beginning. In the neuroscientific community, participants struggled to represent their knowledge in a way that would be meaningful and relevant to educators. Within the educational community, response to the project varied, with many educational researchers resisting it for fear that neuroscience research might make their work obsolete. Achieving dialogue among these communities was even more challenging. One clear obstacle was that participants had difficulty recognizing tacit knowledge in their own field and making this knowledge explicit for partners in other fields. This article analyzes these challenges through a knowledge management framework. [source] Review article: Potential cellular therapies for renal disease: Can we translate results from animal studies to the human condition?NEPHROLOGY, Issue 6 2009MELISSA H LITTLE SUMMARY The incidence of chronic kidney disease is increasing worldwide, prompting considerable research into potential regenerative therapies. These have included studies to determine whether an endogenous renal stem cell exists in the postnatal kidney and whether non-renal adult stem cells, such as mesenchymal stem cell, can ameliorate renal damage. Such stem cells will either need to be recruited to the damaged kidney to repair the damage in situ or be differentiated into the desired cell type and delivered into the damaged kidney to subsequently elicit repair without maldifferentiation. To date, these studies have largely been performed using experimental and genetic models of renal damage in rodents. The translation of such research into a therapy applicable to human disease faces many challenges. In this review, we examine which animal models have been used to evaluate potential cellular therapies and how valid these are to human chronic kidney disease. [source] Environmental adult education and community sustainabilityNEW DIRECTIONS FOR ADULT & CONTINUING EDUCATION, Issue 99 2003Jennifer Sumner Local communities face many challenges in an increasingly globalized world. A new framework for sustainability that includes environmental adult education can help them survive, and even thrive, in the age of globalization. [source] Attitudinal and structural factors contributing to challenges in the work of the scholarship of teaching and learningNEW DIRECTIONS FOR INSTITUTIONAL RESEARCH, Issue 129 2006Kathleen McKinney Much progress has been made in efforts to conduct, support, value, and use the scholarship of teaching and learning in higher education. Nevertheless, to further enhance student learning, many challenges remain. [source] Challenges in conducting research with acutely ill hospitalized older patientsNURSING & HEALTH SCIENCES, Issue 4 2003Karen Hancock phd, bsc(hons) Abstract, The older population is the largest consumer of health care, yet little is known about their nursing needs during acute hospitalization. In undertaking a study to address this issue, the researchers faced many challenges that were related to the complexities of researching acutely ill hospitalized older patients. The purpose of the present discussion paper is to present some of the methodological and pragmatic factors that were encountered so that health professionals and researchers can be aware of the potential obstacles when researching this important area, and plan research accordingly. Potential barriers included the complexity of illness in the older person as a result of comorbidity and iatrogenesis; fatigue; normal age-related processes such as visual/hearing impairment; frequent ward transfer or early discharge; delirium or dementia; and high staff turnover resulting in difficulties in coordinating the study. This paper raises the importance of balancing the need to maximize the rigor of research and the needs of participants. Recommendations for future research are made. [source] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||