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The development of the literature on teacher leadership in the academic realm has been exponential, but the quest for more leadership knowledge seems to be inexhaustible. The purpose of this paper is to analyze teachers’ perceptions with respect to their leadership abilities. Email interviews were conducted with nine teachers from two primary and two secondary schools to obtain their views regarding teacher leadership, whilst affording them opportunities to make suggestions for collaborative teacher leadership development. Having employed a phenomenological approach and thematic analysis as method, this paper proposes a collaborative teacher leadership development framework (CTLDF). Significant about the CTLDF is that teacher leaders should consider ausgang as a way of opening the door for collaboration, homo economicus as a collaborative act and parrhesia as autonomy towards collaborative teacher leadership. The findings reveal that teacher leaders should cultivate a readiness to create opportunities for collaborative leadership development. The study recommends that teacher leaders should first have to be cognizant about their own individual strengths, whilst slowly starting initiatives to collaborate in order to sustain improvements in teacher leadership practices.

Background The UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) published guidelines restricting the use of sodium valproate in women of childbearing age unless they consented to the pregnancy prevention programme (PPP), receiving counselling by an epilepsy specialist, or meeting exclusion criteria. Method We contacted every woman of childbearing age on valproate for epilepsy in NHS Tayside (122). Results Seventeen out of 122 (13.9%) responded to the initial invitation to attend, and 25 out of 122 (20.4%) responded to a letter sent to their GP. Twenty-five attended, 21 completed a consent form, seven switched to another drug and three attended to express dissatisfaction with the MHRA guidance. There were 53 patients identified with learning difficulties. Consent was only taken from three patients, with carers declining to sign consent because the patient was not sexually active. Conclusion Our study suggests that patients and carers do not wish to stop valproate or engage in PPP despite being made aware of MHRA guidance.

Objectives To assess the impact of self-administration of medicines (facilitated by a midwife formulary) on postnatal women’s knowledge of certain post-delivery medications, awareness of the Green Bag Scheme, factors contributing to constipation, pain satisfaction, adherence, and time released to midwives plus feedback from these women and their midwives. Methods The study was conducted in consented postnatal women, who self-administered medications from their bedside lockers. The mode of delivery and parity were recorded. Data were compared in women who self-administered to those who did not. Midwives used our established midwife formulary to write their essential unprescribed medications. Direct interview questionnaires were used to obtain their knowledge on chosen post-delivery medicines, pain satisfaction, the Green Bag Scheme and factors contributing to constipation. Regular medicines counts were used to check adherence. Midwives’ time not administering these self-administered medications was estimated. Self-reported questionnaires were used to obtain feedback from participants and midwives. Responses were analysed proportionately and where appropriate by simple statistics. Results Women (n=203) who self-administered were compared with those (n=401) who did not. Greater medicines’ knowledge and better (96% vs 79%) pain satisfaction were found in self-administering women. Knowledge of each contributing factor to constipation varied. Mode of delivery and parity had no impact on these outcomes. Adherence seemed high 96% (195/203). Awareness of the Green Bag Scheme was poor (66/604). Most women, 94% (191/203) found the service helpful and 89% (178/200) would take part again. At least 224 hours were released to midwives by these self-administering women. 164/203 (81%) midwives felt the scheme was beneficial. Conclusions Self-administering women had better pain satisfaction, medication knowledge and adherence. The need to improve engagement in the Green Bag Scheme was flagged. This service, supported by use of a midwife formulary, can release time to midwives to do other tasks including care for women with more complex issues. A business case for this service is under review.

Background: Cocaine addiction is a global health issue with limited therapeutic options and a high relapse rate. Attentional bias towards substance-related cues may be an important factor for relapse. However, it has never been compared in former and current cocaine-dependent patients. Methods: Attentional bias towards cocaine-related words was assessed using an emotional Stroop task in cocaine-dependent patients ( N = 40), long-term abstinent former cocaine-dependent patients ( N = 24; mean abstinence: 2 years) and control subjects ( N = 28). Participants had to name the colour of cocaine-related words, neutral words and colour names. We assessed response times using an automatic voice-onset detection method we developed and we measured attentional bias as the difference in response times between cocaine-related and neutral conditions. Results: There was an overall group effect on attentional bias towards cocaine, but no group effect on the colour Stroop effect. Two-by-two comparison showed a difference in attentional bias between cocaine-dependent patients and controls, whereas long-term abstinent former cocaine-dependent patients were not different from either. Although cocaine-dependent patients showed a significant attentional bias, consistent with the literature, neither long-term abstinent former cocaine-dependent patients nor controls showed a significant attentional bias towards cocaine-related words. We found no link between attentional bias size and either addiction severity or craving. Conclusions: Cocaine abstinence was associated with an absence of significant attentional bias towards cocaine-related words, which may be interpreted either as an absence of attentional bias predicting success in maintaining abstinence, or as attentional bias being able to disappear with long-term cocaine abstinence. Further research is needed to distinguish the role of attentional bias in maintaining abstinence.

SummaryBarley (Hordeum vulgare L) grain is comparatively rich in (1,3;1,4)-β-glucan, a source of fermentable dietary fibre that protects against various human health conditions. However, low grain (1,3;1,4)-β-glucan content is preferred for brewing and distilling. We took a reverse genetics approach, using CRISPR/Cas9 to generate mutations in members of the Cellulose synthase-like (Csl) gene superfamily that encode known (HvCslF6 and HvCslH1) and putative (HvCslF3 and HvCslF9) (1,3;1,4)-β-glucan synthases. Resultant mutations ranged from single amino acid (aa) substitutions to frameshift mutations causing premature stop codons, and led to specific differences in grain morphology, composition and (1,3;1,4)-β-glucan content. (1,3;1,4)-β-Glucan was absent in the grain of cslf6 knock-out lines whereas cslf9 knock-out lines had similar (1,3;1,4)-β-glucan content to WT. However, cslf9 mutants showed changes in the abundance of other cell wall-related monosaccharides compared to WT. Thousand grain weight (TGW), grain length, width and surface area were altered in cslf6 knock-outs and to a lesser extent TGW in cslf9 knock-outs. cslf3 and cslh1 mutants had no effect on grain (1,3;1,4)-β-glucan content. Our data indicate that multiple members of the CslF/H family fulfil important functions during grain development but, with the exception of HvCslF6, do not impact the abundance of (1,3;1,4)-β-glucan in mature grain.

During plant growth, sodium (Na+) in the soil is transported via the xylem from the root to the shoot. While excess Na+ is toxic to most plants, non-toxic concentrations have been shown to improve crop yields under certain conditions, such as when soil K+ is low. We quantified grain Na+ across a barley genome-wide association study panel grown under non-saline conditions and identified variants of a Class 1 HIGH-AFFINITY-POTASSIUM-TRANSPORTER (HvHKT1;5)-encoding gene responsible for Na+ content variation under these conditions. A leucine to proline substitution at position 189 (L189P) in HvHKT1;5 disturbs its characteristic plasma membrane localisation and disrupts Na+ transport. Under low and moderate soil Na+, genotypes containing HvHKT1:5P189 accumulate high concentrations of Na+ but exhibit no evidence of toxicity. As the frequency of HvHKT1:5P189 increases significantly in cultivated European germplasm, we cautiously speculate that this non-functional variant may enhance yield potential in non-saline environments, possibly by offsetting limitations of low available K+.

We quantified grain sodium (Na+) content across a barley GWAS panel grown under optimal conditions. We identified a strong association with a region containing two low and one high Na+ accumulating haplotypes of a Class 1 HIGH-AFFINITY POTASSIUM TRANSPORTER (HKT1;5) known to be involved in regulating plant Na+ homeostasis. The haplotypes exhibited an average 1.8-fold difference in grain Na+ content. We show that an L189P substitution disrupts Na+ transport in the high Na+ lines, disturbs the plasma membrane localisation typical of HKT1;5 and induces a conformational change in the protein predicted to compromise function. Under NaCl stress, lines containing P189 accumulate high levels of Na+, but show no significant difference in biomass. P189 increases in frequency from wild-species to elite cultivars leading us to speculate that the compromised haplotype is undergoing directional selection possibly due to the value of Na+ as a functional nutrient in non-saline environments.

During plant growth, sodium (Na+) in the soil is transported via the xylem from the root to the shoot. While excess Na+ is toxic to most plants, non-toxic concentrations have been shown to improve crop yields under certain conditions, such as when soil K+ is low. We quantified grain Na+ across a barley genome-wide association study panel grown under non-saline conditions and identified variants of a Class 1 HIGH-AFFINITY-POTASSIUM-TRANSPORTER (HvHKT1;5)-encoding gene responsible for Na+ content variation under these conditions. A leucine to proline substitution at position 189 (L189P) in HvHKT1;5 disturbs its characteristic plasma membrane localisation and disrupts Na+ transport. Under low and moderate soil Na+, genotypes containing HvHKT1:5P189 accumulate high concentrations of Na+ but exhibit no evidence of toxicity. As the frequency of HvHKT1:5P189 increases significantly in cultivated European germplasm, we cautiously speculate that this non-functional variant may enhance yield potential in non-saline environments, possibly by offsetting limitations of low available K+., Kelly Houston et al. report a genome-wide association study for sodium content in barley to find genetic variants that may improve yield under low soil K + levels. They identify variants of the Na+ transporter-encoding gene HvHKT1;5 as important for sodium content variation in non-saline conditions.

Nano grease is found to be stable and homogeneous (wherein carbon nanotubes act as sole thickeners and oil is polyalphaolefin (PAO)). This is a good indication that three dimensional (3D) percolation network structures among carbon nanotubes (single wall and multi wall) play a crucial role in stabilization. To better understand this assumption and provide further evidence, some additional carbon nanomaterials, such as carbon nanofiber (CNF), graphene, fullerene (C60), Ni-coated single wall carbon nanotube (SWNT), are selected to make the grease. Unfortunately, CNF, graphene, fullerene (C60) and Ni-coated SWNT do not form stable greases as nanotubes do. In addition, SWNTs were mixed with CNF and Ni-coated SWNT respectively to see if stable grease could be formed. The results indicate that the CNF/SWNT did not form the stable grease, while Ni-coated SWNT/SWNT did. Inter molecular Van der Waals forces could reasonably explain these experimental results. Appropriate tube size (nanotube and nanofiber), stereo structure (nanotube, graphene and fullerene), surface energy (nanotube and Ni-coated nanotube) are critical factors that determine if Van der Waals forces could take effect or not. The scientific merit of this paper is that we understand in what manner stable greases are formed and what kinds of carbon materials are appropriate for acting as sole thickener.

We describe a community-engaged approach to develop and pilot a home care aide (HCA) administered health interview with Medicaid Home and Community-based Services clients. Stakeholders identified five priority health topics and selected a card sorting methodology for interviews. A barrier to interviewing clients was decreased communication skills among HCAs, and we modified health interview training to include communication training. Stakeholders reported the interview methodology was feasible within usual care, acceptable to clients, and contributed to increased knowledge on providing person-centered care. Stakeholder engagement resulted in valuable insights regarding the health interview methodology and relevant training needs.

Obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) affects about 2% of the general population, for which several etiological factors were identified. Important among these is immunological dysfunction. This review aims to show how immunology can inform specific etiological factors, and how distinguishing between these etiologies is important from a personalized treatment perspective. We found discrepancies concerning cytokines, raising the hypothesis of specific immunological etiological factors. Antibody studies support the existence of a potential autoimmune etiological factor. Infections may also provoke OCD symptoms, and therefore, could be considered as specific etiological factors with specific immunological impairments. Finally, we underline the importance of distinguishing between different etiological factors since some specific treatments already exist in the context of immunological factors for the improvement of classic treatments.

To investigate the benefits in reported outcomes after providing bluetooth accessories for established hearing aid users.Prospective observational study using validated quantitative outcome measures and detailed patient narrative before and two months after patients were provided with bluetooth accessories.Twelve patients with bilateral NHS hearing aids participated. They had a wide range of ages and hearing loss.After two months, 10 patients reported substantial additional benefit and kept the accessories; two returned them for various reasons. Statistically significant changes were seen in two validated outcome measures: the Glasgow Hearing Aid Benefit Profile and the International Outcome Inventory - Hearing Aids, but not in the Speech, Spatial and Qualities of Hearing Scale. Two notable benefits were reported: some described hearing the emotion and mood in a voice for the first time; others were amazed to report an improved ability to hear film or to hold conversations over the telephone.The provision of bluetooth accessories can give additional reported benefit for some patients - we need better knowledge about who benefits, and whether further support/training to individuals would make a difference.

BACKGROUND Soft-milling wheat has potential use for both grain whisky distilling and bioethanol production. Varietal comparisons over wide-ranging environments would permit assessment of both grain and alcohol yield potential and also permit the stability across environments, for these parameters, to be compared. RESULTS For 12 varieties, analysis of variance showed highly significant effects of variety, site, season and fertiliser application on grain and alcohol yield. There were also significant interactions between these factors and, consequently, varieties varied in stability across environments as well as in mean values for the parameters assessed. Alcohol production per hectare was affected more strongly by variation in grain yield than alcohol yield, but increasing grain protein content reduced alcohol yield and, therefore, utility for grain distilling. CONCLUSION To maximise energy production, the best varieties for bioethanol would combine high and stable grain yield with slower reduction of alcohol yield as grain protein increases. For grain distilling, where the energy balance is less important, high alcohol yield will remain the key factor. Data derived using near infrared spectroscopy can be valuable in assessing stability of quality traits across environments. © 2014 Society of Chemical Industry

Rationnel La cocaine est la deuxieme drogue illicite la plus utilisee en France et en Europe, mais il n’existe pas de traitement de substitution, et la majorite des patients rechutent apres un sevrage. Il n’existe pas de marqueurs predictifs de la reussite du sevrage qui puissent etre mesures a l’entree. Parmi les facteurs cognitifs qui influencent la rechute dans les addictions, on compte notamment le biais attentionnel vers la substance, c’est-a-dire la tendance a faire plus attention aux stimuli lies a la substance [1] , [2] . On compte egalement la flexibilite cognitive, c’est-a-dire la capacite a changer de comportement pour s’adapter aux changements de l’environnement [3] . Objectif Nous avons voulu tester la valeur predictive de deux mesures cognitives, le biais attentionnel vers la cocaine et la flexibilite cognitive, dans le maintien d’abstinence de cocaine apres sevrage. Methodes Sujets des patients (n = 52) hospitalises pour un sevrage de cocaine a l’hopital Fernand-Widal (Paris) ont participe a cette etude. Design de l’etude Dans les 48 heures suivant l’entree en hospitalisation, nous avons mesure le biais attentionnel par une tâche de Stroop adaptee a la cocaine, et la flexibilite cognitive par une tâche de renversement d’apprentissage. Les patients ont ensuite ete suivis de facon prospective dans les 3 mois suivant la sortie. Analyse statistique Pour le Stroop, exprime comme un ralentissement du temps de reponse des patients lors de l’exposition a des indices rappelant la cocaine, l’association avec la duree d’abstinence sera testee par une correlation de Spearman. Pour le renversement d’apprentissage, exprime par une probabilite de changement immediat de strategie apres un feedback negatif, l’association avec la duree d’abstinence sera testee par une correlation de Spearman. Resultats attendus Sur les 52 sujets evalues a l’entree en sevrage, 38 ont ete suivi prospectivement jusqu’au bout des trois mois, et le temps moyen d’abstinence apres la sortie etait de 28 ± 32 jours. Les resultats des tâches cognitives seront discutes en fonction de la litterature.

Purpose Ten percent of adults in England have some type of hearing loss and would greatly benefit from hearing aids or other forms of hearing management. However, 76% of these adults do not have hearing aids or other management. The impact of this unmet need can be substantial and has been linked to depression, social isolation, employment problems, loss of independence, and dementia. This article explores how hearing screening—universal, targeted, or opportunistic—can address prevalent, incident, and future needs for hearing services as well as better define the extent of need. Method Adults age ≥60 years living at home in England took part in a health survey, part of which was to determine the extent of need for hearing services in this population. Survey methods included a face-to-face interview and hearing screening using pure tones as well as a self-report questionnaire on other health issues. Results The survey highlighted additional hearing-related factors that will enable referral decisions in primary care to be made with reasonable confidence that patients will use hearing aids and benefit from them. Some relevant nonhearing factors are also reported. Conclusion There is a growing aging population with increasing needs and expectations for hearing services. Targeted screening and triage in primary care, as well as use of advanced technologies, are discussed for the future.

The objective of this workshop was to focus on new directions in carbon nanomaterial research, with a particular focus on new frontiers in nanotube alignment and applications of nanofluids. The first Carbon Nano Material Workshop was held at the Radisson Hotel, Rapid City, South Dakota, from October 30 to November 1, 2011, and was organized by Dr. G. P. “Bud” Peterson, Georgia Institute of Technology, and Dr. Haiping Hong, South Dakota School of Mines and Technology. More than 70 people from various government agencies, national labs, universities, and industries attended the workshop. The workshop agenda follows. The workshop included keynote plenary sessions and invited and contributed sessions, as well as a dedicated poster session of selected presentations assembled from an open call for papers.

Schizophrenia has been characterized by an impaired mentalizing. It has been suggested that distinguishing implicit from explicit processes is crucial in social cognition, and only the latter might be affected in schizophrenia. Two other questions remain open: (1) Is schizophrenia characterized by an hypo- or hyper attribution of intentions? (2) Is it characterized by a deficit in the attribution of intention or of contingency? To test these three questions, spontaneous mentalizing was tested in 29 individuals with schizophrenia and 29 control subjects using the Frith-Happé animations, while eye movements were recorded. Explicit mentalizing was measured from participants’ verbal descriptions and was contrasted with implicit mentalizing measured through eye tracking. As a group, patients made less accurate and less intentional descriptions of the goal-directed and theory of mind animations. No group differences were found in the attribution of contingency. Eye tracking results revealed that patients and controls showed a similar modulation of eye movements in response to the mental states displayed in the Frith-Happé animations. To conclude, in this paradigm, participants with schizophrenia showed a dissociation between explicit and implicit mentalizing, with a decrease in the explicit attribution of intentions, whereas their eye movements suggested a preserved implicit perception of intentions.

To estimate the prevalence of severe and profound hearing loss in a clinical population and to report the audiological and hearing-aid characteristics for this group, as well as outcome measures from use of hearing aids.A retrospective observational study initially, followed by a postal Glasgow health status inventory (GHSI) to establish the patients functional outcomes.A clinical database of 32 781 cases was interrogated from which 2199 cases of severe /profound hearing loss were identified. From these, an adult sample stratified in terms of age and gender of n = 302 was contacted.An estimated 6.7% of the local clinical population and 0.7% of the general population were found to have hearing70 dB averaged over 0.5, 1, and 2 kHz. Most patients were fitted with bilateral hearing aids, using a non-linear prescription, and as a group they reported a high level of social support.This study has estimated the prevalence of severe and profound hearing loss as 6.7% of the clinical population, and 0.7% of the general population. This is consistent with previous work, although it probably underestimates the prevalence. Further work is indicated to strengthen the estimate.

Objectives: The need to improve the response of primary care in terms of identification of people with undiagnosed dementia has long been recognised. The role of Primary Care Liaison was identified as a possible solution. An in-depth consultation was undertaken to identify professional competencies required in executing such a role. Methods: Comprehensive literature and policy reviews were conducted to establish draft competencies or different options/combinations of competencies and competency levels. Consultations with a wide range of professional stakeholders (n523) and over 70 users and carers were conducted through focus groups, electronic document circulation and telephone interviews. An Equality Impact Assessment was conducted concurrent to the consultation. Results: The literature demonstrated a clear need both to improve the rate of diagnosis for people with dementia and to improve the way in which the diagnosis is made. The stakeholder consultation repeatedly affirmed that without a diagnosis the person with dementia and their caregivers did not get access to the appropriate services, and validated the need for a role that would be able to improve a system that would deliver an early and ‘timely’ diagnosis. Competencies, based on the literature and policy documents, were developed and debated through the consultation processes. Conclusions: Three main areas of competency were identified: counselling; screening; and health education and promotion. The competencies identified require a skilled experienced professional approach. A useful team model would be that the role is placed within a ‘GP cluster’ as accessibility to GP records and collaborative working with GPs is essential within the role. Personal continuing professional development has a high profile in maintaining these competencies.

The genetic influence on the association between contemporaneously measured intelligence and academic achievement in childhood was examined in nationally representative cohorts from England and The Netherlands using a whole population indirect twin design, including singleton data. We identified 1,056 same-sex (SS) and 495 opposite-sex (OS) twin pairs among 174,098 British 11 year-olds with test scores from 2004, and, 785 SS and 327 OS twin pairs among 120,995 Dutch schoolchildren, aged 8, 10 or 12 years, with assessments from 1994 to 2002. The estimate of intelligence heritability was large in both cohorts, consistent with previous studies (h (2) = 0.70 +/- A 0.14, England; h (2) = 0.43 +/- A 0.28-0.67 +/- A 0.31, The Netherlands), as was the heritability of academic achievement variables (h (2) = 0.51 +/- A 0.16-0.81 +/- A 0.16, England; h (2) = 0.36 +/- A 0.27-0.74 +/- A 0.27, The Netherlands). Additive genetic covariance explained the large majority of the phenotypic correlations between intelligence and academic achievement scores in England, when standardised to a bivariate heritability (Biv h (2) = 0.76 +/- A 0.15-0.88 +/- A 0.16), and less consistent but often large proportions of the phenotypic correlations in The Netherlands (Biv h (2) = 0.33 +/- A 0.52-1.00 +/- A 0.43). In the British cohort both nonverbal and verbal reasoning showed very high additive genetic covariance with achievement scores (Biv h (2) = 0.94-0.98; Biv h (2) = 0.77-1.00 respectively). In The Netherlands, covariance estimates were consistent across age groups. The heritability of intelligence-academic achievement associations in two population cohorts of elementary schoolchildren, using a twin pair extraction method, is at the high end of estimates reported by studies of largely preselected twin samples. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Twelve soft-milling wheat varieties were grown, over a total of 12 environments, trials being sown in three locations, in two seasons, both with and without nitrogen fertiliser (N) application. Grain protein and hardness levels were assessed on all samples and initial analysis showed highly significant effects of variety, site, season and N-rate on both characters. The environments differed widely for mean protein and hardness levels and the response of the individual varieties was assessed by linear regression of their protein and hardness values on the mean value of all twelve varieties, in each environment. For protein, there were very strong correlations between the environment means and the means of the individual varieties, but there were also slight differences in stability across environments, with varieties like Claire showing a tendency to accumulate more grain protein at sites characterised by higher protein levels. At sites with highest grain hardness, Ambrosia and Kipling, which both carry the 1B/1R translocation, had much harder grain than the other varieties. Correlations, across varieties, between grain protein and hardness were significant in only some environments. It was concluded that grain hardness could be a useful additional parameter for assessing both breeding lines and distillery intake samples, while further research should consider variation in grain texture and its genetic control.

General cognitive ability (g) does not explain sex differences in academic test performance by the end of compulsory education. Instead, individual differences in specific reasoning abilities, after removing the effects of g, may contribute to the observed gender gaps. Associations between general or specific cognitive abilities, sex, and educational attainments were analysed in a cross-sectional study of 11-year-olds (M = 133.5 months, SD = 3.5), at an age before substantive gender-related selection-bias occurred. The 178,599 pupils (89,545 girls and 89,054 boys) attending English state schools represented 93% of the UK's local education authorities. In 2004 each student completed the Cognitive Abilities Test—Third Edition (CAT3), assessing verbal, quantitative, and nonverbal reasoning abilities. These data were linked to each child's attainment scores on national Key Stage 2 tests in English, mathematics and science. A sex difference in g, favoring girls, was statistically significant but of negligible effect size (Cohen's d = .01). Girls scored 26% of a SD higher than boys on a verbal residual factor, and boys scored 28% of a SD higher than girls on a quantitative residual factor, with negligible sex differences on a nonverbal residual factor (1% of a SD). In education, 10% more girls than boys achieved UK government targets in English. In mathematics and science, sex differences were less apparent at the government target grade (Level 4), although a 5% greater proportion of boys than girls performed at the highest level in mathematics (Level 5). General cognitive ability (g) was strongly related to an educational factor score (r = .83) as expected, and did not explain sex differences in academic performance. In general linear models, a verbal residual factor explained up to 29% of girls' higher English attainment, and better quantitative skills among boys explained 50% of their higher attainment in mathematics. Besides the significant contributions of specific cognitive abilities to gender differences in English and mathematics, there remains substantive variance of the educational gender gap left to explain.

In literacy learning situations, teachers frequently fix errors before helping children find errors. This can be a source of confusion for students, especially when they are experiencing difficulty or when a task is hazy. This article describes a process of self-monitoring that helps children identify errors. It is based on three crucial steps - noticing, questioning and judging one's own concrete behaviour in relation to a current task.

A compact swatch testing system has been developed to precisely quantify the permeation and penetration of a chemical weapons agent simulant while reducing the system footprint, improving safety and usability, enhancing automation, and maintaining measurement precision comparable to its predecessor. With the addition of a new test cell design and temperature control mechanism, the improved system demonstrated higher steady-state permeation rates and shorter breakthrough times. In comparison to the earlier prototype, the compact configuration's footprint and volume are reduced substantially, thereby allowing for use inside a 6-foot laboratory hood. A reference device for assessing test cell performance was also developed.