Counting cells with a low-cost integrated microfluidics-waveguide sensor

The capability to count cells from biofluids at low cost has important diagnostic implications in resource-poor settings. Many approaches have been developed to address this important need, and while most envision a low per-test cost, the detector instrument can be quite expensive. In this report, we present a novel device that enables low-cost and rapid counting of cells from a drop of blood. We demonstrate a shallow, buried, planar waveguide fabricated by ion exchange in glass that underlies a microfluidic structure for capturing cells. Laser light transmitted through the waveguide was attenuated by the number of metal nanoparticles tagged to the cells because of the interaction of the metal particles with the evanescent field of the waveguide. Calibration of the sensor using bead-tagged lymphocytes captured from human blood showed that the sensor could semi-quantitatively count as few as 100 cells/μL of blood. This technology enables the enumeration of specifically captured cells, allowing for a point-of-care, hand-held device for fast and affordable cell counting in screening, remote, or resource-poor settings.     

The path to information in the public domain: Official publications in Spain

Official publications are aimed towards editing and spreading the messages created by governments and other bodies of the public domain. At the beginning, the aim of this activity is twofold: on the one hand, fulfilling the principle of publicity of the norms, as it constitutes a basis for the efficiency of those, and, on the other hand, fulfilling a general function of information about the activities of public authorities. As the action of government generalises, this function of communication between those governing and those governed has extended to other fields of activity, thus, free and pay materials, both printed and electronic, are published.     

Mountains and Molehills: egocentricism in recent research

Abstract

The paper describes, on a comparative basis, the approaches to, and the methods and effects of, academic restructuring in the universities of the United Kingdom and the Federal Republic of Germany, which has become necessary in the light of dwindling resources. The aim is to rationalise provision in order to achieve greater efficiency. To that effect courses and departments have been, or may be, closed or combined, and institutions may have to merge or even close. On the other hand, selective steps have been taken in both countries to protect and strengthen science and technology, especially research in these areas. The article also analyses the differences and similarities of such measures, given the underlying different traditions and conditions. It highlights, in particular, the role of the governments or their agencies in the implementation of such policies.     

西方关于学生政治社会化的研究：主要的模型和结论

国际教育局(BIE)等机构正在进行的“公民资格教育”研究,被称为现在“最有价值的国际比较教育研究之一。为此,国际教育局的《教育的信息与革新》季刊1995年3月出版了专刊。我们译出其中的两篇,并用现在的篇名予以涵盖。第一篇对三个主要研究模型作了概括,第二篇则对主要研究结论作了总结,实际上,涉及的问题似已超出了学生政治社会化的范围。     

Educational performance and attitudes toward school as risk‐protective factors for violence: A study of the Asian/Pacific Islander Youth Violence Prevention Center

The purpose of this study was to examine whether school experiences, school performance, and other risk‐protective factors were related to violence among Hawaiian, Filipino, and Samoan youths residing in Hawai'i. This study analyzed survey data (N = 325) collected in three high schools having concentrations of Filipino, Hawaiian, and Samoan youths, as well as a smaller number of Japanese students, which served as a comparison group. The analyses consisted of bivariate and multivariate analyses of risk protection for violence. Two‐ and three‐way interactions were tested to examine whether there were specific gender and/or ethnic effects. The final model explained 29.3% of the variance in violent behavior. Five variables were significant: grade point average, pressure to choose between school and friends, favorable school attitude, feeling safe, and importance of college. Schools serving these populations should focus on fostering positive bonds between teachers and students and building bridges to families and neighborhoods. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

The construction of parents and teachers as agents for the improvement of municipal schools in Chile

This article examines how teachers and parents in 10 municipal schools serving students growing up under conditions of social vulnerability represented themselves, and others, as valid agents for charting school improvement. In four schools parents and teachers saw each other as trustworthy and collaborating to provide an education that could transform students’ life chances. In the other six schools, social relations were marked by distrust, staff constructed students as lacking the resources necessary to benefit from a rigorous academic programme, and parents in leadership positions shared with teachers the belief that school failure could largely be attributed to uncommitted parents. These results suggest that the impact of quality assurance policies tends to be associated with the social capital of municipal schools, thus educational policy needs to consider developing and strengthening social capital within schools.     

Observer based sliding mode controller for vehicles with roll dynamics

In this work, considering the roll dynamics and actuator dynamics, an observer-based control scheme for a vehicle is proposed. The proposal considers a nonlinear higher order sliding mode observer to estimate unmeasurable lateral velocity, roll angle and roll velocity. Using the observer information, a controller based on block control with sliding mode technique is designed for the reference trajectory tracking of the lateral and yaw velocities of the vehicle. The stability of the complete closed-loop system including zero dynamics is analyzed. The effectiveness of the proposed scheme is demonstrated through CarSim simulations.