Continuous low-dose antibiotic prophylaxis to prevent urinary tract infection in adults who perform clean intermittent self-catheterisation: the AnTIC RCT

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Disaster response and climate change in the Pacific

AbstractDisasters, and therefore disaster response, in the Pacific are expected to be affected by climate change. This research addressed this issue, and focused on the immediate humanitarian needs following a disaster, drawing upon adaptive capacity as a concept to assess the resilience of individual organisations and the robustness of the broader system of disaster response. Four case study countries (Fiji, Cook Islands, Vanuatu and Samoa) were chosen for deeper investigation of the range of issues present in the Pacific. The research process was guided by a Project Reference Group, which included key stakeholders from relevant organisations involved in Pacific disaster response to guide major decisions of the research process and to influence its progression.Given the complexity of issues involved, including the contested definitions of adaptive capacity, the research team developed a conceptual framework to underpin the research. This framework drew upon concepts from a range of relevant disciplines including Earth System Governance, climate change adaptation, health resources, resilience in institutions and practice theory. Objective and subjective determinants of adaptive capacity were used to assess the ‘disaster response system’, comprised of actors and agents from government and non-government sectors, and the governance structures, policies, plans and formal and informal networks that support them.Results revealed the most important determinant of adaptive capacity in the Pacific to be communications and relationships, with both informal and formal mechanisms found to be essential. Capacity (including human, financial and technical); leadership, management and governance structures; and risk perceptions were also highly important determinants of adaptive capacity. The research also found that in small Pacific island bureaucracies, responsibility and capacity often rests with individuals rather than organisations. Leadership, trust, informal networks and relationships were found to have a strong influence on the adaptive capacity of organisations and the broader disaster response system.A common finding across all four case study countries affecting adaptive capacity was the limited human resources for health and disaster response more generally, both in times of disaster response and in day-to-day operations. Another common finding was the gap in psychosocial support after a disaster. Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) as an immediate post-disaster humanitarian need was relatively well established amongst responding organisations (although long term WASH issues were not resolved), while other humanitarian needs (health care, and food and nutrition) had varying stages of capacity – often limited by human, financial and technical resources. Adaptive capacity was therefore constrained by current gaps which need addressing alongside a future focus where risk is changing.Drawing on these and other findings, recommendations for addressing key determinants of adaptive capacity were developed for relevant stakeholder groups including policy makers and practitioners in the disaster and emergency response sectors in Australia and the Pacific

NETWORK TRAFFIC CHARACTERIZATION AND INTRUSION DETECTION IN BUILDING AUTOMATION SYSTEMS

The goal of this research was threefold: (1) to learn the operational trends and behaviors of a realworld building automation system (BAS) network for creating building device models to detect anomalous behaviors and attacks, (2) to design a framework for evaluating BA device security from both the device and network perspectives, and (3) to leverage new sources of building automation device documentation for developing robust network security rules for BAS intrusion detection systems (IDSs). These goals were achieved in three phases, first through the detailed longitudinal study and characterization of a real university campus building automation network (BAN) and with the application of machine learning techniques on field level traffic for anomaly detection. Next, through the systematization of literature in the BAS security domain to analyze cross protocol device vulnerabilities, attacks, and defenses for uncovering research gaps as the foundational basis of our proposed BA device security evaluation framework. Then, to evaluate our proposed framework the largest multiprotocol BAS testbed discussed in the literature was built and several side-channel vulnerabilities and software/firmware shortcomings were exposed. Finally, through the development of a semi-automated specification gathering, device documentation extracting, IDS rule generating framework that leveraged PICS files and BIM models.Ph.D

Reliability, Availability and Maintainability Study of a Light Rail Transit System

The TFG title mentioned consists on a RAM Study of a Light Rail Transit (LRT) System. Its aim lies in achieving a defined level of service in a given time, by demonstrating quantitatively and qualitatively the availability of the system. The Quality of the Service has to be guaranteed by the application of engineering concepts, methods, techniques and tools, such as ITEM Toolkit.    This study is a first approach to the Preliminary Engineering Analysis of a Light Rail Transit (LRT) System. The study is divided into four interrelated parts. The first one consists on a presentation of the RAM Discipline, by a development of its theoretical foundations and the four Key Performance Indicators used through all the study. The methodology employed during the analysis and actual methods used for RAM analysis are also described in this section. Then, it has been developed a Failure Mode and Effects Criticality Analysis (FMECA) with a subsequent Sensitive Analysis to ensure that the results are binary in terms of probability. With that, a consequent Fault Tree Analysis (FTA) has been carried out. After that, the third part of the study provides the LRT RAM Requirements Apportionment and last, but not least, Preventive/Corrective Actions have been proposed

Drone Journalism Lab Operations Manual

This text is a guide for safely conducting drone journalism field work. It takes into account America\u27s current drone regulations, our understanding of the public\u27s acceptance of drones, the state of drone technologies, and our own experiences. The number one goal of any drone journalism operation is safety. At no time should safety be compromised. If there is any doubt, return the drone, also known as an unmanned aerial system (UAS), to the landing zone and terminate the flight. Ethical journalism is responsible journalism, and flying a drone means taking responsibility for the safety of those near you, on the ground and in the air. The three flight operations roles defined in the Drone Journalism Lab Operations Manual are Pilot In Command (PIC), Observer, and Journalist. One individual can fill all three roles, which we define below: The Pilot In Command: The PIC is responsible for all flight operations. It is the PIC who has the ultimate authority on any flight. The PIC determines if the aircraft is airworthy and capable of conducting the proposed operations. The PIC is responsible for determining if the airspace allows the proposed operation. The PIC is responsible for conducting operations within all FAA regulations and any restrictions set forth by a grant of exemption. The PIC is responsible for briefing the other members of the flight crew about what the mission is, what their roles and responsibilities are, and what is expected of them before, during and after flight operations. NOTE: The pilot in command, the one holding the FAA issued Part 107 certificate, is by regulation the final authority on if the aircraft flies or not. If an accident occurs, it is the Part 107 certificate holder who will be held responsible. As such, news managers must accept the pilot in command\u27s decision about flight safety as final. The Observer: The Observer is responsible for monitoring the operational area to ensure that there are no hazards that may endanger the flight or people not part of the UAS flight operations team. The Observer is the only member of the team who can speak to the PIC during flight operations. The Observer is to alert the PIC immediately if any aircraft come into the area, or if any person or vehicle comes near the operation. The Observer must remain within speaking distance of the PIC. Do not use radios to communicate. The Journalist: The Journalist is responsible for communicating flight goals to the PIC before flight and verifying results after landing. The Journalist determines what is needed for the story and communicates that to the PIC. The PIC is responsible for determining if the Journalist\u27s goals are possible under the conditions presented. During flight, the PIC may ask for feedback from the Journalist, but the Journalist should only speak to the pilot if asked while the aircraft is aloft. The Journalist can act as Observer. Under Part 107, operations can occur with only a PIC. If no additional personnel are available for the flight, care and consideration must be taken for the additional workload that the PIC will take on, including having to watch the operation area for hazards, completing journalistic goals and ensuring flight safety

Effectiveness of Machine Learning in Assessing QoT Impairments of Photonics Integrated Circuits to Reduce System Margin

We propose machine learning technique for assessment of QoT impairments of integrated circuits. We consider margin reduction problem applied to a switching component. Overall results and data sets for machine-learning training are obtained by leveraging the integrated software environment of the Synopsys Photonic Design Suite