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1 – 10 of 277Norman Jackson, Geoff Parks, Margaret Harrison and Chantal Stebbings
The article introduces the concept of benchmarking as a referencing process to support self‐regulation of quality and outcome standards in higher education programmes. It examines…
Abstract
The article introduces the concept of benchmarking as a referencing process to support self‐regulation of quality and outcome standards in higher education programmes. It examines the potential for exploiting the product of programme specification to explain which institutional and external reference points or benchmarks have been used to inform the design of programmes. It provides practitioner commentary on the process of benchmarking based on the worked examples provided in the Quality Assurance Agency guidelines for preparing programme specifications and offers an emergent practice model. It concludes by identifying key development issues that will need to be addressed.
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Thorn model psychosocial interventions (PSI) assist clients and their carer systems to manage the effects of psychotic symptoms. PSI has a broad menu of possible interventions…
Abstract
Thorn model psychosocial interventions (PSI) assist clients and their carer systems to manage the effects of psychotic symptoms. PSI has a broad menu of possible interventions from which a client and their therapist choose the most efficacious. In this process, assessment of the client's lived experience is crucial to choosing the most appropriate interventions. However, there are difficulties in adapting interventions designed for the ‘normal’ population for those with learning disabilities. This case study will explore conducting a Thorn model semi‐structured interview with a man with a diagnosis of Asperger's syndrome and mental health problems, highlighting both challenges and the approach used to address them.
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Defines certain types of property owner, with implications of theirstatus in law and tax. Discusses the significance of “badges oftrade”. Comments on certain case law concerning…
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Defines certain types of property owner, with implications of their status in law and tax. Discusses the significance of “badges of trade”. Comments on certain case law concerning section 776 of the Corporation Taxes Act 1988.
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The purpose of this paper is to provide a “Q&A interview” conducted by Joanne Pransky of Industrial Robot Journal as a method to impart the combined technological, business and…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to provide a “Q&A interview” conducted by Joanne Pransky of Industrial Robot Journal as a method to impart the combined technological, business and personal experience of a prominent, industry engineer-turned entrepreneur regarding his pioneering efforts in bringing a robotic invention to market. This paper aims to discuss these issues.
Design/methodology/approach
The interviewee is Geoff Howe, Senior Vice President of Howe & Howe, Inc., a subsidiary of Textron Systems and a leader in advanced robotic platform solutions and applications built and proven for the most extreme conditions in the world. Geoff and Michael Howe founded Howe & Howe Technologies in 2001 and was acquired by Textron Systems in 2018. In 2010, Howe and Howe developed one of the world’s first robotic fire-fighting solutions. Geoff Howe describes the evolution of the Thermite robotic firefighter’s commercial development, along with the challenges of breaking ground in this new industry.
Findings
Geoff and his identical twin brother, Michael Howe, are inventors, military contractors, actors and entrepreneurial businessmen famous for their philanthropic drive to give back to their community. When Geoff and Mike were just six years old, they were known as “Howe and Howe Construction.” At the age of eight, Mike and Geoff built their own one room log cabin with the power tools their mom had given them for their birthday. At 16 years old, they started tinkering with vehicles before they even had their drivers’ licenses. They both graduated from Maine high school and colleges with honors. The company’s portfolio includes the RIPSAW® , Thermite, the Badger, Subterranean Rover and other extreme vehicles used for numerous applications. In 2010, Howe and Howe completed three new vehicles. First was the Thermite™ which entered the unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) market as the USA’s first firefighting UGV. The second vehicle was Ripchair™, the development of an off-road wheelchair for those that have become disabled and are unable to walk. The third vehicle was Riptide, the amphibious version of the RIPSAW. Year 2015 saw the commercial development of the Big Dog Extreme 4x4 fire truck and the Thermite RS1 and RS3 firefighting robots. The Big Dog is an off-road truck and also serves as an all-terrain multi-use firetruck. The Thermite provides firefighters and first responders immediate eyes inside the fire as well the ability to safely attack industrial, chemical and HAZMAT fires from their core. The Thermite robot provides safety and inside access on containing and defeating fires of any magnitude.
Originality/value
Howe & Howe Technologies first gained notoriety in 2001, with the development of the world’s fastest tank, the RIPSAW. Successful demonstrations soon followed, which eventually allowed the Howes, at the age of 31, to be named among the youngest in history to ever receive a multi-million dollar military contract from the USA. Soon after, in 2010, Howe & Howe received a Guinness World Record for developing the world’s smallest armored vehicle, the Badger. By the time the Howes were 36, they had one world record, multiple patents pending for their product developments, as well as military contracts. The Howes also had their own reality television show on a major US network. In 2010, they completed the Thermite, Fire Fighting Unmanned Ground Vehicle. In 2012, the Howes founded “Outdoors Again,” a nonprofit 501c3 organization that holds outdoor events and social activities for those who require the use of a wheelchair.
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Tiantian Liu, Keith Walley, Geoff Pugh and Paul Adkins
The purpose of this study is to generate insight into the effects of entrepreneurship education in China by conducting a preliminary scoping study of the enterprising tendency of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to generate insight into the effects of entrepreneurship education in China by conducting a preliminary scoping study of the enterprising tendency of university students studying business.
Design/methodology/approach
This study used a self-administered questionnaire based on the General Measure of Enterprising Tendency v2 (GET2) test to measure the enterprising tendency of a group of Chinese university students. Decision trees, using the Chi-square automatic interaction detector (CHAID) approach, and multiple regression analyses were used to investigate the enterprising tendency of respondents.
Findings
The findings from this study indicate that the students have an overall medium level of enterprising tendency and strengths in some enterprising characteristics. The findings reveal that gender, family business, hometown and entrepreneurship education are significantly related to enterprising tendency but that age, household income, parents’ education and occupation are not.
Research limitations/implications
Although the study is based on a relatively small sample taken from just one university in Beijing, the findings suggest that the enterprising tendency of students can be encouraged by entrepreneurship education. Combined with evidence that entrepreneurship education is at a relatively early stage of development in China, this finding suggests considerable scope to increase student’s enterprising tendency by extending, creating a more favourable environment for and improving the methods used to deliver entrepreneurship education. Enterprising tendency can be argued to naturally result in entrepreneurial intention; however, this extension is beyond the scope of this study, which is restricted to the analysis of enterprising tendency.
Originality/value
This study makes an original contribution to knowledge as it is one of the first studies to explore enterprising tendency among university students in China. It has value for government, policymakers and university program designers in that it provides direction for entrepreneurship education in China.
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Geoff Lancaster and Paul Reynolds
Originally undertaken on behalf of a national multiple foodretailing chain concerned about a 50 per cent fall off in sales at a newstore within six months of its opening, this…
Abstract
Originally undertaken on behalf of a national multiple food retailing chain concerned about a 50 per cent fall off in sales at a new store within six months of its opening, this research includes a comparative study of two other supermarkets in the same town. Interviews were conducted with 321 store customers and 189 people at random locations elsewhere and a standard questionnaire completed to determine the store features important in attracting their patronage, including price, layout, selection and variety of goods, opening hours, parking facilities and convenience of location. It was established that there was nothing radically wrong with the client company′s store and subsequent implementation of recommended “fine tuning” of a number of its features has led to its developing a comparably favourable level of popularity. However, it is concluded that marketing research should be commissioned at the initial planning stage, with particular reference to suitability of location, rather than as a means of sorting out deficiencies which become apparent only after completion and opening.
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Compares the findings from the Youth Target Group Index (TGI) Survey of British children with those from the Simmonds Kids and Teens survey in the USA, with implications for…
Abstract
Compares the findings from the Youth Target Group Index (TGI) Survey of British children with those from the Simmonds Kids and Teens survey in the USA, with implications for marketers. Concludes that the two countries’ youth undeniably share a sophisticated common culture, with most but not all influences coming from the USA, and that there is as a result considerable scope for marketers of goods such as sportswear and web‐based activities; differences between the youth in the two countries include a greater degree of independence among American than British children aged 7 to 10, with somewhat higher mobile phone ownership.
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Geoff Newiss and Ian Greatbatch
The purpose of this paper is to quantify the risk of fatality for men who are reported missing following a night out. Additionally, the paper aimed to develop search heuristics to…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to quantify the risk of fatality for men who are reported missing following a night out. Additionally, the paper aimed to develop search heuristics to inform the development of search strategies, through an examination of the key geographical points involved in these cases.
Design/methodology/approach
Cases were identified, and data collected, from online media sources supplemented with a request to UK police forces and a search of the UK Missing Persons Unit database. In total, 96 cases which occurred over a five-and-a-half-year period in the UK were included. The study compares the profile of fatalities that result from disappearances occurring in different types of geographical area. Location data were georeferenced allowing Euclidean distances between geographical locations to be generated.
Findings
In total, 60 per cent of disappearances lasting longer than 48 h resulted in fatality, rising to almost all cases after three days missing. In 89 per cent of cases bodies are recovered from water; 11 per cent on land after the individual died from a fall, hypothermia or a drugs overdose.
Practical implications
Search strategies can be informed by a consideration of the type of area the person was socialising (high night-time economy through to rural areas) and the geography of subsequent sightings.
Originality/value
In focusing on the specific circumstances of a disappearance rather than an individual’s personal characteristics, the paper offers an innovative approach to understanding risk (i.e. what is the likelihood of a particular outcome occurring) and the development of heuristics for search strategies in missing person cases.
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Discusses the requirement for teleoperation and the optimum division of tasks between the human operator and the robot controller. Concludes that a combination of adaptive…
Abstract
Discusses the requirement for teleoperation and the optimum division of tasks between the human operator and the robot controller. Concludes that a combination of adaptive autonomous control with teleoperation will allow operators to take a more supervisory role.
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Peter Aggleton, Geoff Whitty, Abigail Knight, David Prayle, Ian Warwick and Kim Rivers
A five‐month exploratory in‐depth study was conducted in two sites in England with young people age 8‐17 years and adults with a professional or personal interest in health…
Abstract
A five‐month exploratory in‐depth study was conducted in two sites in England with young people age 8‐17 years and adults with a professional or personal interest in health promotion within this age group. Over 90 young people and 40 adults, including parents, teachers, youth workers, health promotion officers, general practitioners and clinical staff, were interviewed. The study aimed to examine adults’ and young peoples’, sometimes differing, beliefs about health, illness and health promotion messages. The findings suggested that young people operate with an integrated concept of health and well‐being which affords high importance to social relations and social activities. Similarly, adults with a broad professional role in relation to young people tended to report that they did not favour a focus on specific health topics, such as drugs, smoking and sexual health, but would prefer to provide a more inclusive approach which takes account of the mental, emotional and social dimensions of health experiences. The research suggests that a narrow focus solely on commonly‐defined priorities, such as drugs and sexual health, may not meet the needs of young people.
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