The impact of perceived group success-failure on motivational beliefs and attitudes: A causal model.

Two models describing the theoretical relationship among the constructs of perceived group success–failure, individual and collective levels of job-specific efficacy and outcome expectancy, satisfaction, and organizational commitment were developed. Model 1 proposed that the causal relationship between group success–failure and subsequent attitudinal variables (satisfaction and organizational commitment) is completely mediated by efficacy and outcome expectancy variables. Model 2 proposed a direct causal link from perceived group success–failure to the attitudinal variables and omitted questionable causal paths from personal efficacy and collective outcome expectancy to the attitudinal variables. The competing models were subjected to structural equation path model analysis. The 2nd model produced an adequate fit between theory and data. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interfacial Strain‐Induced Oxygen Disorder as the Cause of Enhanced Critical Current Density in Superconducting Thin Films

To understand the origin of the increase in critical current density of rare earth barium cuprate superconductor thin films with decreasing thickness, a series of sub‐300‐nm EuBa₂Cu₃O_7?δ thin films deposited on SrTiO₃ substrates are studied by X‐ray diffraction and electrical transport measurements. The out‐of‐plane crystallographic mosaic tilt and the out‐of‐plane microstrain both increase with decreasing film thickness. The calculated density of c‐axis threading dislocations matches the extent of the observed low‐field enhancement in critical current density for fields applied parallel to c. The in‐plane mosaic twist and in‐plane microstrain are both around twice the magnitude of the out‐of‐plane values, and both increase with decreasing film thickness. The results are consistent with the observed stronger field enhancement in critical current density for fields applied parallel to ab. The lattice parameter variation with thickness is not as expected from consideration of the biaxial strain with the substrate, indicative of in‐plane microstrain accommodation by oxygen disorder. Collectively, the results point to an enhancement of critical current by interfacial strain induced oxygen disorder which is greatest closest to the film‐substrate interface. The findings of this study have important implications for other thin functional oxide perovskite films and nanostructures where surface and interfacial strains dominate the properties.     

Integrating conservation planning and landuse planning in urban landscapes

The rapid growth of cities around the world is now seen as a major contributor to global biodiversity loss and many governments include biodiversity conservation as an explicit policy goal. To help prevent further loss of biodiversity, there is an urgent need for more strategic approaches to conservation planning in urban environments based on a scientific understanding of landscape patterns, species requirements and development pressures. In this study, we demonstrate the use of new conservation planning tools to better integrate information on threatened species into landuse planning. We present a case study in the Greater Melbourne area that utilises the Zonation conservation planning tool with data for 30 threatened fauna species. We perform a multi-species spatial prioritisation that incorporates species-specific connectivity requirements and demonstrate the use of this information in a number of landuse planning contexts. First, we quantitatively assess the differences between Melbourne's current conservation areas with the locations prioritised by Zonation and determine priority areas for their extension. We then show how the prioritisation can be used in decisions regarding Melbourne's Urban Growth Boundary and in rezoning land for development. Finally, we demonstrate how the prioritisation can be used to identify areas of conservation significance within individual developments that account for the wider landscape context. These results demonstrate how conservation planning tools can be better integrated into the different stages of landuse planning for future urban growth.     

Hydroxyl Group Separation Distances in Anti-Freeze Compounds and Their Effects on Ice Nucleation

Since the discovery of biological antifreeze glycoproteins (AFGPs), which can inhibit ice nucleation, there has been considerable interest in understanding their mechanisms and mimicking them in synthetic polymers. In this study, we used molecular dynamics simulations of modified polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) compounds to show that the hydroxyl (OH) group distance is a key factor in whether certain compounds promote or inhibit ice nucleation. A hydroxyl distance smaller than ~2.8 Å but greater than ~7.1 Å in modified PVA (MPVA) compounds was associated with the promotion of ice nucleation, while a hydroxyl group separation distance of approximately ~5.0 Å was correlated with a delay in ice nucleation, owing to changes in the energy of the system. Thus, these results may help explain some of the mechanisms of current known anti-freeze compounds and may have implications for designing new anti-freeze compounds in the future.     

Performative technologies for heritage site regeneration

Heritage sites are an important part of understanding our role in history. They have the potential to teach us important lessons, such as where we came from and subsequently, the people it has made us today. As members of a large, heritage-led, regeneration project, we are working with the Hafod–Morfa Copperworks, a heritage site in the Lower Swansea Valley where there is not much to see or hear. The few ruins at the site make it difficult to imagine what the site would have been like back in its heyday. Our goal at the site is to draw people together, not to view a finished piece of curated heritage, but rather, to start conversations about their memories and the significance of the site to them and to discover what they would like to see at the site in the future. The technology we are producing is about engaging with the local community and stakeholders as groups to provoke discussion. This contrasts with previous uses of mobile guides which only attempt to be tourist aids. In this article, we report on two prototype technologies we have developed to help accomplish this task. Throughout the article, we discuss how and why designing performative technologies could help encourage people to visit, socialise and communicate within the area. Our early results suggest that expressive performative technologies are good at gaining spectators’ attention and encouraging an active engagement between performer and spectator.     

CRISP: cooperation among smartphones to improve indoor position information

Accurate indoor location information remains a challenge without incorporating extensive fingerprinting approaches or sophisticated infrastructures within buildings. Nevertheless, modern smartphones are equipped with sensors and radios that can detect movement and can be used to predict location. Dead reckoning applications on a smartphone may attempt to track a person’s movement or locate a person within an indoor environment. Nevertheless, smartphone positioning applications continue to be inaccurate. We propose a new approach, CRISP—cooperating to improve smartphone positioning, which assumes that dead reckoning has inaccuracies, but leverages opportunities of the interaction of multiple smartphones. Each smartphone computes its own position, and then shares it with other nearby smartphones. The signal strengths of multiple radios that are used on smartphones estimate distances between the devices. While individual smartphones may provide some positioning (possibly inaccurate) information, accuracy may improve when several smartphones cooperate and share position information through multiple iterations. Via indoor experimentation and simulation, we evaluate our approach and believe it is promising as an inexpensive and passive means to improve position information without complex data training and fusion. The accuracy of CRISP is within a meter. In addition, CRISP possibly leads to better results for a number of applications, including exercise profiling.     

The Growing Impact of Micro/Nanomaterial‐Based Systems in Precision Oncology: Translating “Multiomics” Technologies

The field of precision oncology is rapidly progressing toward integrated “multiomics” analysis of multiple molecular species (such as DNA, RNA, or proteins) to provide a more complete profile of tumor heterogeneity. Micro/nanomaterial‐based systems, which leverage the unique properties of miniature materials, are currently well positioned to expand beyond rudimentary biomarker detection toward multiomics signature analysis. To enable clinical translation, the rational design and implementation of miniaturized systems should be driven by the unique clinical challenges present at various crucial cancer stages. This review features micro/nanomaterial‐based systems that are robustly tested on real patient samples for molecular biomarker detection at i) initial cancer screening and/or diagnosis, ii) cancer prognosis and risk stratification, and iii) longitudinal treatment/recurrence monitoring. Furthermore, this review discusses the use of micro/nanomaterials to facilitate sample preparation for different molecular biomarker species. Finally, this review deliberates on the recent paradigm shift of micro/nanomaterial‐based system innovation toward integrated multiomics cancer signature analysis and puts forth insights and perspectives on existing challenges. It is anticipated that this review could stimulate the propagation of new concepts and approaches to kick‐start a new generation of clinically translational technologies that capitalize on multiomics cancer signatures.