Radiation reaction forces and the expanding universe

The expanding universe is described in terms of the known forces of classical physics. It is shown that great clouds of stars are non-conservative systems and that radiation reaction forces play a part in guiding stellar motions. The forces are of importance in unsymmetrical stars and evidence is collected to show that perhaps all stars are possessed of deep seated thermal asymmetries. The forces continually act to increase the mean velocity of the stars and the galaxy is calculated to expand at a rate which closely approximates the observed rate of expansion. From a relation connecting the mean velocity of the stars and their age, it is deduced from the observed motions that the age of the galaxy is about 10¹⁰ years. The deduced rate of expansion of the galaxy agrees well with the observational data and is identical in form and numerical constant with Hubble's relation connecting the velocity of recession and distances of nebulæ.Because of the relative size and spacing of the extra galactic nebulæ and the short time scale it is supposed that the nebulae were formed by fission from a parent-super nebula and this resulted in thermal asymmetries which brought the newly considered forces into action.The resulting expansion was produced by slow evolutionary radiation processes which bear no direct relation to the properties of space or atomic constants.The calculations suggest that in describing the motions of typical stars over long periods of time, radiation reaction forces are as important as the classical gravitational forces.     

Constructing the academic category of teacher educator in universities’ recruitment processes in Aotearoa,New Zealand

An examination of recruitment materials and interviews with personnel involved in the employment of teacher educators to positions in university-based New Zealand initial teacher education (ITE) courses reveals three constructions of teacher educator as academic worker: the professional expert, the dually qualified, and the traditional academic. However, this study’s analysis shows how these constructions allow universities to pursue a bifurcated approach for the employment of teacher educators, an approach that maintains binaries within teacher education and hinders development in the field. Furthermore, as the spectre of a major cultural shift in the provision of New Zealand ITE arises, the extent to which the professional expert and traditional academic constructions of teacher educator might serve the scope of work required of postgraduate ITE going forth is questioned.     

How to conduct External Quality Assessment Schemes for the pre-analytical phase?

In laboratory medicine, several studies have described the most frequent errors in the different phases of the total testing process, and a large proportion of these errors occur in the pre-analytical phase. Schemes for registration of errors and subsequent feedback to the participants have been conducted for decades concerning the analytical phase by External Quality Assessment (EQA) organizations operating in most countries. The aim of the paper is to present an overview of different types of EQA schemes for the pre-analytical phase, and give examples of some existing schemes. So far, very few EQA organizations have focused on the pre-analytical phase, and most EQA organizations do not offer pre-analytical EQA schemes (EQAS). It is more difficult to perform and standardize pre-analytical EQAS and also, accreditation bodies do not ask the laboratories for results from such schemes. However, some ongoing EQA programs for the pre-analytical phase do exist, and some examples are given in this paper. The methods used can be divided into three different types; collecting information about pre-analytical laboratory procedures, circulating real samples to collect information about interferences that might affect the measurement procedure, or register actual laboratory errors and relate these to quality indicators. These three types have different focus and different challenges regarding implementation, and a combination of the three is probably necessary to be able to detect and monitor the wide range of errors occurring in the pre-analytical phase.