Development of a spatially uniform low-temperature hydrogen combustor

Examples of the use of additive manufacturing and rapid prototyping in a range of applications are of great interest in order to emphasize their role in development and production technology. In this study, a catalytic low temperature burner for H₂ on a lab scale with an integrated flow distributor was designed, manufactured, and tested for functionality. Based on a theoretical approach, a flow distributor for the burner was designed and a prototype was built using fused deposition modeling (FDM). Based on test results, an optimized version of the burner was then designed and manufactured using selective laser melting (SLM). The functionality of the designed catalytic burner was proven. Several advantages were found in comparison to conventional non-catalytic burners. In particular, flameless uniform low temperature heat generation with temperatures of about 200 °C could be realized. This contribution highlights the potential of additive manufacturing in chemical engineering. Not only was the final product built using SLM, but also during the development process, FDM was used for rapid prototyping.     

Computer-based instruction for improving student nurses’ general numeracy: is it effective? Two randomised trials

In response to concern over the numeracy skills deficit displayed by student nurses, an online computer programme, “Authentic World®”, which aims to simulate a real-life clinical environment and improve the medication dosage calculation skills of users, was developed (Founded in 2004 Authentic World Ltd is a spin out company of Glarmorgan and Cardiff Universities, Cardiff, Wales UK.). Two randomised controlled trials were conducted, each at a UK University, in order to investigate the impact of Authentic World® on student nurses’ general numeracy abilities. All first year nursing students who gave consent were randomised equally into an intervention or control group. The intervention group were given access to Authentic World®. The primary outcome measure was the students’ scores on a general numeracy test. The Intention to Treat (ITT) analysis in both trials revealed a small negative effect of Authentic World® on general numeracy, which was statistically significant in one trial. However, compliance with the intervention was very low in both trials, with only 24 and 12% of students allocated to the intervention groups spending more than 15 minutes using the programme. Providing nursing students with access to Authentic World® is not an effective use of resources since use of the programme appears to be very low.     

State-Dependent Memory in Infants

Why do infants remember some things and not others? Human infants frequently cycle through different states such as calm attentiveness, wakeful activity, and crying. Given that cognitive processes do not occur in isolation, such fluctuations in internal state might influence memory processing. In the present experiment, declarative memory in 9-month-old infants (N = 96) was heavily state dependent. Infants exhibited excellent retention of a deferred imitation task after a 15-min delay if their state at encoding was identical to their state at retrieval (e.g., calm). Infants failed to exhibit retention if their state at encoding was different from their state at retrieval (e.g., calm vs. animated). Infant memory processing depends on internal cues.