scholarly journals Not Communicating science? Aiming for national impact

F1000Research ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 1540 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas Prokop ◽  
Sam Illingworth
Keyword(s):  
Science Communication ◽  
Natural Sciences ◽  
Current State ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Way

Communicating science to wider lay audiences is of increasing importance and is becoming an ever larger part of a scientist's remit which also offers important opportunities. We discuss here the current state of science communication in the field of the natural sciences in the UK, and the enormous improvements that could be achieved through putting more weight on objective-driven long-term initiatives, ideally in the form of interdisciplinary networks, to achieve higher impact. We describe the barriers that stand in the way of such developments and make a number of suggestions how funding organisations in particular could play a major role in overcoming these barriers.

The Election Campaign as a Liminal Stage — Negotiations over Meanings

1987 ◽  
Vol 35 (3) ◽  
pp. 559-574 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanna Herzog
Keyword(s):  
Social Construction ◽  
Science Communication ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Election Campaigns ◽  
Long Term Effects ◽  
Conceptual Frame ◽  
Social Meanings ◽  
Symbolic World ◽  
The Way

The paper deals with the role and significance of election campaigns through a consideration of the relevant literature in political science, communication and anthropology. The current interpretation of elections as ritual and drama is altered by focusing on V. Turner's concept of liminality. As liminal periods, it is claimed, election campaigns are an active arena for social construction of political worlds. They take an active part in moulding political cognition and thus produce long-term effects. Perceiving elections in this conceptual frame focuses the empirical concern on the different actors participating in moulding old or new social meanings, the way challenging alternatives are presented, negotiated, included or excluded, the way events as well as symbols become meaningful. It reveals the contested as well as the taken-for-granted, unquestioned and thus reinforced political symbolic world.

Learning and practicing police craft

2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 276-286 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mike Rowe ◽  
Elizabeth Turner ◽  
Geoff Pearson
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Core ◽  
Policy Debates ◽  
Changing Patterns ◽  
Craft Skills ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Degree Level ◽  
The Way

Purpose The authors consider current policy debates in the UK about the professionalisation of the police to respond to changing patterns of crime and, specifically, the suggestion that officers be educated to degree level. Drawing on the ethnographic evidence, the purpose of this paper is to focus attention on how officers learn, and continue to develop the applied, that is the craft aspects of the work of uniformed constables. Design/methodology/approach The authors draw on a long-term ethnographic project observing officers during the course of their duties. The focus is on the use of discretion and of particular powers. But in the course of the research, the authors also observe the way officers behave and the way they talk about their job. Findings The authors suggest that, while there may be a role for degree qualifications, attention needs to be paid to the practices the authors observe, practices that have long been the core craft skills of uniformed officers. Originality/value The authors suggest that, despite the emergence of cybercrime and other new forms of crime/threat, the evidence suggests that much has not. Not least, crime is not the only focus of police work.

Post-pandemic challenges for all ages in an ageing society

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Burke
Keyword(s):  
Life Expectancy ◽  
Older People ◽  
Scenario Planning ◽  
Ageing Society ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Future ◽  
Long Term Impact ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Way

Purpose This paper aims to highlight lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic for planning for the future of our ageing society. It looks at trends, changes in our society and implications for people of all ages. It focusses on the importance of planning and whether COVID-19 will lead to long-term changes. Design/methodology/approach This paper draws on the author’s experiences running an intergenerational organisation during the pandemic and other work associated with ageing well. Findings This paper highlights some of the risks and unknowns we face going forwards and points to lessons and opportunities for “building back better”. Research limitations/implications This paper is based on a review of published articles and viewpoints. Practical implications The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged people of all ages in different ways, some of which have tested intergenerational solidarity. At the same time, the pandemic has raised issues which we must all address going forward: planning for future pandemics, planning for an ageing society and ensuring that future planning works for all generations. This paper explores all these themes in the light of lessons from COVID-19. Firstly, despite much risk assessment and scenario planning, we were not well placed in the UK or across the world to respond to the multiple challenges of COVID-19. Have we learned the lessons to be able to deal better with the inevitable pandemics that will follow in the future? It is also well documented that the pandemic has exacerbated existing inequalities in our society. What will the long-term impact be for longevity and will less healthy lives reverse the trend of increasing life expectancy? Secondly, what are the lessons for our ageing society? As life expectancy rises, what will the quality of life be like in those added years? Many of today’s babies can expect to have a 100-year life. What does that mean for the way we lead our lives and can we ensure that everyone can age well? Third, these are not just issues for older people, but for people of all ages and generations. The Covid-19 experience has been different for younger and older people – whether it has been health or job security, income, taxation or housing. Questions of intergenerational fairness have again raised their heads, alongside the longer term impact for future generations. Social implications Firstly, despite much risk assessment and scenario planning, we were not well placed in the UK or across the world to respond to the multiple challenges of COVID-19. Have we learned the lessons to be able to deal better with the inevitable pandemics that will follow in the future? It is also well documented that the pandemic has exacerbated existing inequalities in our society. What will the long-term impact be for longevity and will less healthy lives reverse the trend of increasing life expectancy? Secondly, what are the lessons for our ageing society? As life expectancy rises, what will the quality of life be like in those added years? Many of today’s babies can expect to have a 100-year life. What does that mean for the way we lead our lives and can we ensure that everyone can age well? Thirdly, these are not just issues for older people, but for people of all ages and generations. Measures that bring older and younger people together and encourage meaningful mixing will help increase understanding and awareness between generations. This has huge implications for our society and communities. Originality/value This paper reaches two main conclusions. Firstly, the well-known saying: “failing to plan is planning to fail”. This applies to all the issues discussed in this paper re future pandemics, our ageing society and future generations. Secondly, the experience of the COVID-19 pandemic should be the catalyst for changing the way we live and lead to new beginnings. We cannot just carry on as before.

Technology Transfer in HEIs

2005 ◽  
Vol 19 (5) ◽  
pp. 345-361
Author(s):  
Tas Gohir ◽  
Grier Palmer
Keyword(s):  
Biological Sciences ◽  
Technology Transfer ◽  
Academic Entrepreneurship ◽  
Ivy League ◽  
Current State ◽  
Financial Exploitation ◽  
Transfer Operation ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Economic Assets

The UK's bioscience research base is one of the country's genuine long-term economic assets. It is critically important for the UK not to repeat past mistakes, when financial exploitation of innovative and groundbreaking bioresearch went overseas. This study reviews commercialization from the Department of Biological Sciences at Warwick University as a microcosm of the current state of technology transfer in academia. Its technology transfer operation is typical of many other such organizations. Warwick University does, however, have the benefit of being in the ‘Ivy League’ of UK universities and is regarded as a beacon of entrepreneurial flair. If the power of academic entrepreneurship is to be fully unleashed anywhere, Warwick is as well placed as any to capitalize on the opportunities. While the purpose of the study has been to consider how Warwick's enormous entrepreneurial prowess can be harnessed for the greater commercialization of its bioscience research, many of the conclusions and recommendations are applicable to other departments and academic institutions worldwide.

scholarly journals Aiming for long-term, objective-driven science communication in the UK

F1000Research ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 1540 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas Prokop ◽  
Sam Illingworth
Keyword(s):  
General Public ◽  
Science Communication ◽  
Effective Science ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Opinion Article ◽  
Term Objective

Communicating science to wider lay audiences is an increasingly important part of a scientist's remit, and is something that many scientists are keen to embrace. However, based on surveys carried out amongst the UK public, as well as our own experiences in developing and delivering such activities, we believe that they are not always as effective at engaging members of the general public as they could be. In this opinion article we argue that in order to achieve more effective science communication, we need more objective-driven and long-term initiatives. As well as being implemented by the scientists themselves, funding organisations can play an important role in helping to drive such initiatives, and we suggest a list of actionable items that might allow for some of these ideas to be implemented.

scholarly journals Addressing unmet needs in opiate dependence: supporting detoxification and advances in relapse prevention

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Katherine Herlinger ◽  
Anne Lingford-Hughes
Keyword(s):  
Relapse Prevention ◽  
Psychosocial Interventions ◽  
Opiate Dependence ◽  
Opioid Substitution Therapy ◽  
Harm Minimisation ◽  
Pharmacological Management ◽  
Current State ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Opioid Substitution

SUMMARY Despite record-breaking numbers of opiate related deaths in the UK in 2019, pharmacological management of opiate dependence has evolved little since the advent of methadone in 1965. Along with harm minimisation and psychosocial interventions, the mainstay of pharmacological treatment remains opioid substitution therapy (OST) using methadone or buprenorphine, with many patients receiving OST for many years. Even with these treatments, opiate users continue to face mortality risks 12 times higher than the general population, and emerging evidence suggests that individuals who remain on long-term OST present with a range of physical and cognitive impairments. Therefore, with a growing ageing opiate dependent population who would benefit from detoxification from OST, this article provides an overview of the current state of opiate dependence in clinical practice, explores the reasons why availability and acceptability of detoxification pathways are declining, and discusses emerging pharmacological therapies that could provide benefit in relapse prevention.

Organisational creativity—birth of a journal

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Lionel Stapley
Keyword(s):  
Early Development ◽  
Executive Director ◽  
Social Dynamics ◽  
New Technology ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Working Through ◽  
The 1960S ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Way

This article documents the way that, taking advantage of new technology, organisational creativity resulted in developing from a failing organisation, to develop into a truly international organisation. The article starts from the conflictual nature of industrial relations in the UK in the 1960s and continuing into the 1970s which resulted in the launch of OPUS (an Organisation for Promoting Understanding of Society) in 1975, its early development, and decline into a near non-active organisation until the appointment of a new Executive Director in 1994. The article then concentrates on the development of a new comprehensive medium- to long-term strategy that, in the following six years resulted in the development of a vibrant and successful organisation providing for the needs of those involved in any way with a systems psychodynamic way of working. It then moves to one of the major strategic aims, that of producing an international journal that would provide a vehicle for the systems psychodynamic field of working; through to the publication of the first issue of the international journal Organisational and Social Dynamics, in 2001.

scholarly journals Mainstreaming of genomic medicine in gastroenterology, present and future: a nationwide survey of UK gastroenterology trainees

BMJ Open ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. e030505
Author(s):  
Ibrahim Al Bakir ◽  
Gregory Malcolm Sebepos-Rogers ◽  
Hilary Burton ◽  
Kevin J Monahan
Keyword(s):  
Personalised Medicine ◽  
Genomic Medicine ◽  
Nationwide Survey ◽  
Training Programme ◽  
Genomic Testing ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Current State ◽  
Future Clinical Practice ◽  
The Uk

ObjectiveGenomics and personalised medicine are increasingly relevant for patients with gastroenterological conditions. We aim to capture the current state of genomics training in gastroenterology to review current understanding, clinical experience and long-term educational needs of UK trainees.Design and settingA web-based nationwide survey of all UK gastroenterology specialty trainees was conducted in 2017.Results100 trainees (14% of UK gastroenterology trainees) completed this survey. Only 9% and 16% of respondents believe that their local training programme adequately prepares them for the future clinical practice using genomic medicine and personalised medicine, respectively. Barriers identified include the need for greater trainee education (95%), inadequate clinical guidance to base interventions on the results of genomic testing (53%), concerns over misinterpretation by patients (43%) and overuse/misuse of testing by clinicians (34%).Survey respondents felt prepared to perform HFE genotyping (98%), assess TPMT status (97%) and interpret HLA subtyping for suspected coeliac disease (85%). However, only a minority felt prepared to perform the following investigations: polyposis screening (34%), hereditary pancreatitis screening (30%), testing for Lynch yndrome (33%) and KRAS testing for colorectal cancer (20%).Most respondents would support holding dedicated training days on genomic medicine (83%), formal training provisions for the mainstreaming of genomic testing (64%), an update to the UK gastroenterology specialty training curriculum and examinations (57%) and better-defined referral pathways for local genomic services (91%).ConclusionMost gastroenterology trainees in this survey feel ill equipped to practise genomic and personalised medicine as consultants. We propose specific revisions to the UK gastroenterology specialty curriculum that addresses trainees needs.

The ‘distribution question’: measuring and evaluating trends in inequality

2019 ◽  
pp. 187-198
Author(s):  
Stewart Lansley
Keyword(s):  
Public Awareness ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Top Incomes ◽  
National Debate ◽  
Long Term Trends ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Key Aspects ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Way

This chapter examines the role played by key data sets and statistical analysis in the growing debate about inequality in the UK and elsewhere. It reviews the evidence from studies of long term trends in the share of top incomes in the UK and other countries, and the remarkable impact of the findings on the politics of the inequality debate. It shows the way the studies came to challenge key aspects of prevailing economic orthodoxy, and their profound influence on public awareness of how the economic cake is shared. It then examines the revived debate around the impact of rising inequality on economic growth and stability. Finally, it draws some lessons from the way UK official statistics on inequality have been used by government in the national debate about trends in the income gap.

French and Spanish Queer Film

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chris Perriam ◽  
Darren Waldron
Keyword(s):  
Focus Groups ◽  
Sense Of Community ◽  
National Identities ◽  
Audience Research ◽  
Large Sample ◽  
Current State ◽  
Trans People ◽  
Screening Questionnaires ◽  
On Line ◽  
The Uk

This book advances the current state of film audience research and of our knowledge of sexuality in transnational contexts, by analysing how French LGBTQ films are seen in Spain and Spanish ones in France, as well as how these films are seen in the UK. It studies films from various genres and examines their reception across four languages (Spanish, French, Catalan, English) and engages with participants across a range of digital and physical audience locations. A focus on LGBTQ festivals and on issues relating to LGBTQ experience in both countries allows for the consideration of issues such as ageing, sense of community and isolation, affiliation and investment, and the representation of issues affecting trans people. The book examines films that chronicle the local, national and sub-national identities while also addressing foreign audiences. It draws on a large sample of individual responses through post-screening questionnaires and focus groups as well as on the work of professional film critics and on-line commentators.

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