Dublin City University

About: Dublin City University is a education organization based out in Dublin, Ireland. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Machine translation & Laser. The organization has 5904 authors who have published 17178 publications receiving 389376 citations. The organization is also known as: National Institute for Higher Education, Dublin & DCU.

Alasdair MacIntyre on Education: In Dialogue with Joseph Dunne

Abstract: This discussion begins from the dilemma, posed in some earlier writing by Alasdair MacIntyre, that education is essential but also, in current economic and cultural conditions, impossible. The potential for resolving this dilemma through appeal to ‘practice’, ‘narrative unity’, and ‘tradition’(three core concepts in After Virtue and later writings) is then examined. The discussion also explores the relationship of education to the modern state and the power of a liberal education to create an ‘educated public’ very different in character from the electorates of contemporary democratic regimes. It concludes with some remarks on the role of education in combating prejudice against certain kinds of human difference.

Using environmental analytical data to estimate levels of community consumption of illicit drugs and abused pharmaceuticals

Abstract: A solid phase extraction (SPE) method was developed and applied in conjunction with a previously reported liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry procedure in order to establish the presence of illicit drugs and abused pharmaceuticals in treated wastewater and surface water samples at the ng L-1 level. The procedure was applied in Dublin, Ireland, and rapidly expanding commuter towns in the surrounding counties. Cocaine was detected in 70% of the collected samples in the range of 25-489 ng L-1; its primary metabolite, benzoylecognine (BZE), was also detected, in the range of 22-290 ng L-1. Other substances detected included morphine, Tempazepam and the primary metabolite of methadone.

Pretreatment techniques used in biogas production from grass

Abstract: Grass is being considered as a potential feedstock for biogas production, due to its low water consumption compared to other crops, and the fact that it can be cultivated in non-arable lands, avoiding the direct competition with food crops. However, biogas production is limited by the characteristics of the feedstock; in particular its complex lignocellulosic structure. Hence, different pretreatment methods are being investigated for grass structure disruption before undergoing the anaerobic digestion process. The aim of this paper is to review current knowledge on pretreatment techniques used for grassland biomass. Pretreatment techniques were categorized into mechanical, microwave, thermal, chemical and biological groups. The effect of the application of each studied methods on the biogas yield and on the energy balance is discussed. A further comparison between the covered techniques was revealed.