RISE May-June 2009 - University of Salford

RISE! Research Innovation and Internationalisation News
WRISTBAND TRIALS
The University of Salford is part of collaborative team, along
with University of Liverpool, University of Manchester and
University of Plymouth, conducting trials to test
acupressure wrist bands as a drug-free alternative for
chemotherapy-related nausea. The trial will be the first of its
kind to run in the NHS and is funded by the National Institute
for Health Research Health Technology Assessment
programme. More than 75% of patients undergoing
chemotherapy experience nausea, this can impact negatively
on their quality of life. Acupressure wrist bands can reduce
the symptoms of travel sickness by applying force to the Nei
Kuan pressure point on each wrist.
The national study of more than 700 patients, at nine NHS cancer
centres, will now measure the cost and clinical effectiveness
of acupressure wrist bands in reducing and controlling chemotherapyrelated
nausea. Led by Professor Mari Lloyd-Williams from the University
of Liverpool’s Academic Palliative and Supportive Care Studies Group,
the team will analyse a wide range of patients diagnosed with different
types of cancer and undergoing chemotherapy, in order to
discover which patient groups would most benefit from the
intervention. Professor Lloyd-Williams said: “Developments in
anti-emetic drugs – used to combat nausea and vomiting – have
decreased the symptoms suffered by chemotherapy patients but nausea
remains a debilitating and poorly controlled symptom. Patients rank
nausea and vomiting amongst the most distressing side effects of
chemotherapy. In some cases, poorly controlled symptoms can lead to
patients choosing to stop potentially curative treatment. If the trials are
successful, we should be able to control this debilitating symptom with
a drug-free therapy. The wrist bands could potentially help patients to
maintain a good quality of life throughout their treatment.”
For more information on this project contact Dr. Adam Garrow at:
a.garrow@salford.ac.uk
KNOWLEDGE INTENSIVE
ORGANISATIONS
Dr Maria Burke of Salford Business School has contributed a
chapter entitled “Cultural Issues: An Exploration Towards
Improved Knowledge Management Relationships” to
The Handbook of Research on Knowledge-Intensive
Organizations, edited by D. Jemielniak, Kozminski Business
School, Poland and J.Kociatkiewicz, University of Essex, UK.
This book has just been published and offers an international collection
of studies on knowledge-intensive organizations with insight into
organizational realities as varied as universities, consulting agencies,
corporations, and high-tech start-ups. The research investigated
knowledge management in Poland, Russia and the UK and offers new
perspectives for the future. Ongoing related projects will take the
research to a new stage and examine knowledge sharing in SMEs in
Poland, Hungary and the UK.
To find out more about Maria’s work please contact her at:
m.e.burke@salford.ac.uk
WHOOPEE!
The funniest whoopee cushion sounds are long and
whiny, according to research into the humour of
flatulence undertaken by Professor Trevor Cox, Professor of
Acoustics at the University of Salford. People are more
amused by drawn-out noises than abrupt toots, with a
seven-second burst most likely to provoke a laugh.
While whoopee cushions have traditionally been the practical joke of
choice for cheeky schoolboys, women actually find the sound
slightly funnier than men. The surprising results were based on a
survey of 34,000 people who were played six of twenty possible
whoopee cushion sounds and asked to rank the noises by how much
they made them laugh. The research on www.soundsfunny.org was
carried out to help celebrate the charity event Comic Relief, which this
year features the whoopee cushion alongside its traditional red
nose logo.
Professor Cox, who helped set up the survey, said that the research
would help engage young people in the science of sound, as well as
having a practical purpose: “The whoopee cushion has a great deal in
common with the human voice and how instruments work, so it is a
memorable way of portraying the principles of acoustics,” he said.
“This research will enable us to engineer the ultimate whoopee
cushion, and fine-tune the world's funniest design.” The experiment
produced one more result that will surprise any parent who has endured
the repeated pranks of a mischievous child; flatulent sounds
apparently get funnier the more you listen to them.
For more information on Trevor’s work please contact him at:
t.j.cox@salford.ac.uk
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