title: The link between national paid leave policy and work–family conflict among married working parents

authors: Allen, Tammy D.

subjects: work–family conflict

abstract: We investigated relationships between four dimensions of work–family conflict (time- and strain-based work interference with family, time- and strain-based family interference with work) and three key national paid leave policies (paid parental leave, paid sick leave, paid annual leave) among a sample of 643 working married parents with children under the age of 5 across 12 industrialised nations. Results provided some evidence that paid sick leave has a small but significant negative relationship with work–family conflict. Little evidence was revealed of a link between paid parental leave or of a link between paid annual leave and work–family conflict. Family-supportive organisational perceptions and family-supportive supervision were tested as moderators with some evidence to suggest that paid leave policies are most beneficial when employees' perceptions of support are higher than when they are lower. Family-supportive organisational perceptions and family-supportive supervision were both associated with less work–family conflict, providing evidence of their potential benefit across national contexts.

text: The link between national paid leave policy and work–family conflict among married working parents We investigated relationships between four dimensions of work–family conflict (time- and strain-based work interference with family, time- and strain-based family interference with work) and three key national paid leave policies (paid parental leave, paid sick leave, paid annual leave) among a sample of 643 working married parents with children under the age of 5 across 12 industrialised nations. Results provided some evidence that paid sick leave has a small but significant negative relationship with work–family conflict. Little evidence was revealed of a link between paid parental leave or of a link between paid annual leave and work–family conflict. Family-supportive organisational perceptions and family-supportive supervision were tested as moderators with some evidence to suggest that paid leave policies are most beneficial when employees' perceptions of support are higher than when they are lower. Family-supportive organisational perceptions and family-supportive supervision were both associated with less work–family conflict, providing evidence of their potential benefit across national contexts.

year: 2014-01

title: Field data collection for implementation of Supercapacitor Assisted LED Lighting (SCALED)

authors: Norbu, Tenzin

subjects: Renewable energy

abstract: With the increasing impact of global warming, climate change is becoming the biggest threat for all life on our planet. The conventional way of generating electricity from the burning of fossil fuels releases significant amounts of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, which contributes to the rise in the earth’s temperature. Moreover, fossil fuels are being consumed very rapidly and we now have limited resources, which need to be monitored to face future energy demands. The development of renewable energy sources, such as solar power, is a rapidly growing technology. With the extensive research and investment in this industry at present, in the near future solar power will be one of our leading renewable energy sources. Furthermore, as solar panels directly produce direct current (DC), they can be directly tied to a DC microgrid without requiring any power converter, thereby minimizing losses and increasing efficiency.
The supercapacitor assisted light emitting diode (SCALED) converter is one of the new circuit techniques under development for low voltage light emitting diode (LED) systems at the University of Waikato. In this circuit, an LED is connected in series with the supercapacitor bank forming part of a resistor-capacitor (RC) charging loop. This is to avoid energy losses in the RC charging loop, which can create, in the worst case, a 50% loss. As the commonly used 12 V LEDs are internally DC operated devices, SCALED will be applicable in DC microgrids, which are the emerging technology in low voltage distribution systems.
The groundwork for this project requires various solar-related field data collection and simulations for the successful implementation of this innovative technique. Unlike a conventional power supply, solar power output directly depends on the solar irradiance level, which is very unpredictable. Given the unique behaviour of solar panel output, starting with a near constant current behaviour and changing over to a practical voltage source with an approximately constant array resistance, combining a supercapacitor bank and an LED lamp will be a challenge in developing the SCALED topology. In addition, proper field measurements and analysis of these characteristics are essential to develop more efficient and reliable SCALED circuits for DC microgrid applications.

text: Field data collection for implementation of Supercapacitor Assisted LED Lighting (SCALED) With the increasing impact of global warming, climate change is becoming the biggest threat for all life on our planet. The conventional way of generating electricity from the burning of fossil fuels releases significant amounts of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, which contributes to the rise in the earth’s temperature. Moreover, fossil fuels are being consumed very rapidly and we now have limited resources, which need to be monitored to face future energy demands. The development of renewable energy sources, such as solar power, is a rapidly growing technology. With the extensive research and investment in this industry at present, in the near future solar power will be one of our leading renewable energy sources. Furthermore, as solar panels directly produce direct current (DC), they can be directly tied to a DC microgrid without requiring any power converter, thereby minimizing losses and increasing efficiency.
The supercapacitor assisted light emitting diode (SCALED) converter is one of the new circuit techniques under development for low voltage light emitting diode (LED) systems at the University of Waikato. In this circuit, an LED is connected in series with the supercapacitor bank forming part of a resistor-capacitor (RC) charging loop. This is to avoid energy losses in the RC charging loop, which can create, in the worst case, a 50% loss. As the commonly used 12 V LEDs are internally DC operated devices, SCALED will be applicable in DC microgrids, which are the emerging technology in low voltage distribution systems.
The groundwork for this project requires various solar-related field data collection and simulations for the successful implementation of this innovative technique. Unlike a conventional power supply, solar power output directly depends on the solar irradiance level, which is very unpredictable. Given the unique behaviour of solar panel output, starting with a near constant current behaviour and changing over to a practical voltage source with an approximately constant array resistance, combining a supercapacitor bank and an LED lamp will be a challenge in developing the SCALED topology. In addition, proper field measurements and analysis of these characteristics are essential to develop more efficient and reliable SCALED circuits for DC microgrid applications.

year: 2018

title: Culture, for and against: patterns of "Culturespeak" in New Zealand

authors: Goldsmith, Michael

subjects: multiculturalism

abstract: Culture is invoked not only as a means of justifying redress for discrimination or historical injustice, but also as a standard of accountability by which the upholding of rights (or their suppression) can be measured. Rather than assume conceptual coherence regarding the notion of culture that such applications appear to share, it is proposed to analyse them as terms within a broad and open-ended field of 'culturespeak', a concept generally ascribed to Ulf Hannerz.

text: Culture, for and against: patterns of "Culturespeak" in New Zealand Culture is invoked not only as a means of justifying redress for discrimination or historical injustice, but also as a standard of accountability by which the upholding of rights (or their suppression) can be measured. Rather than assume conceptual coherence regarding the notion of culture that such applications appear to share, it is proposed to analyse them as terms within a broad and open-ended field of 'culturespeak', a concept generally ascribed to Ulf Hannerz.

year: 2003-09-01