Marginalization of end-use technologies in energy innovation for climate protection

Mitigating climate change requires directed innovation efforts to develop and deploy energy technologies. Innovation activities are directed towards the outcome of climate protection by public institutions, policies and resources that in turn shape market behaviour. We analyse diverse indicators of activity throughout the innovation system to assess these efforts. We find efficient end-use technologies contribute large potential emission reductions and provide higher social returns on investment than energy-supply technologies. Yet public institutions, policies and financial resources pervasively privilege energy-supply technologies. Directed innovation efforts are strikingly misaligned with the needs of an emissions-constrained world. Significantly greater effort is needed to develop the full potential of efficient end-use technologies

'The mum has to live with the decision much more than the dad'; a qualitative study of men's perceptions of their influence on breastfeeding decision-making

© 2018 The Author(s). Background: Although breastfeeding is widely acknowledged as the normal method of infant feeding, there are large variations in rates of initiation and duration. Several factors are linked to the likelihood of breastfeeding initiation, including the influence and opinion of the child's father. There is limited research into men's perception of their influence, or if they feel it appropriate to be involved in deciding how to feed their children. The aim of this study was to investigate, using a qualitative methodology, fathers' perceptions of their influence on the decision to feed their child breastmilk or formula. Methods: Six men were recruited through Children's Centres in Bristol, United Kingdom, and a phenomenological research methodology implemented using semi-structured interviews. Specific objectives were: to understand participants' views on breastfeeding; understand if and how these views were discussed with their partner; to determine if participants believed involvement in the feeding decision is appropriate; to understand how they felt about the decision made; and to see if their views changed after the birth of their child. Results: Multiple themes emerged during analysis, including deferring of responsibility to the mother; breastfeeding as normal practice; change in attitude; involvement in parenting; and, advantages for the father. The men in the study accepted breastfeeding as normal behaviour, probably because of their upbringing in households where breastfeeding was practiced. There was consensus that women had more say in deciding to breastfeed, which was explained as a consequence of their greater involvement. It could also be interpreted as an unwillingness to interfere in an area perceived as 'owned' by women. Participants acknowledged that breastfeeding was more difficult than they had perceived. Conclusions: The key themes emerging from the interviews are suggestive of an impact on breastfeeding interventions that use the father as an intermediary. If they do not feel that they are 'permitted' to comment on their partner's breastfeeding, then simply increasing knowledge of breastfeeding benefits in these men is likely to have minimal impact

Support for people who use Anabolic Androgenic Steroids: A Systematic Scoping Review into what they want and what they access.

BACKGROUND: Since there is a paucity of research on support for people using Anabolic Androgenic Steroids (AAS), we aimed to identify and synthesise the available evidence in this field. Gaining an understanding of the support both accessed and wanted by recreational AAS users will be of use to professionals who provide services to intravenous substance users and also to those working in the fields of public health and social care, with the aim to increase engagement of those using AAS. METHODS: A systematic scoping review of the literature to explore and identify the nature and scope of information and support both accessed and wanted by non-prescribed AAS users. Any support services or information designed to help people who use AAS were considered. RESULTS: We identified 23 papers and one report for review, which indicated that AAS users access a range of sources of information on: how to inject, substance effectiveness, dosages and side effects, suggesting this is the type of information users want. AAS users sought support from a range of sources including medical professionals, needle and syringe programmes, friends, dealers, and via the internet, suggesting that, different sources were used dependent on the information or support sought. DISCUSSION: AAS users tended to prefer peer advice and support over that of professionals, and access information online via specialist forums, reflecting the stigma that is experienced by AAS users. These tendencies can act as barriers to accessing services provided by professionals. CONCLUSIONS: Support needs to be specific and targeted towards AAS users. Sensitivity to their perceptions of their drug-use and the associated stigma of being classified in the same sub-set as other illicit drug users is relevant to facilitating successful engagement

Current and emerging developments in subseasonal to decadal prediction

Weather and climate variations of subseasonal to decadal timescales can have enormous social, economic and environmental impacts, making skillful predictions on these timescales a valuable tool for decision makers. As such, there is a growing interest in the scientific, operational and applications communities in developing forecasts to improve our foreknowledge of extreme events. On subseasonal to seasonal (S2S) timescales, these include high-impact meteorological events such as tropical cyclones, extratropical storms, floods, droughts, and heat and cold waves. On seasonal to decadal (S2D) timescales, while the focus remains broadly similar (e.g., on precipitation, surface and upper ocean temperatures and their effects on the probabilities of high-impact meteorological events), understanding the roles of internal and externally-forced variability such as anthropogenic warming in forecasts also becomes important. The S2S and S2D communities share common scientific and technical challenges. These include forecast initialization and ensemble generation; initialization shock and drift; understanding the onset of model systematic errors; bias correct, calibration and forecast quality assessment; model resolution; atmosphere-ocean coupling; sources and expectations for predictability; and linking research, operational forecasting, and end user needs. In September 2018 a coordinated pair of international conferences, framed by the above challenges, was organized jointly by the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP) and the World Weather Research Prograame (WWRP). These conferences surveyed the state of S2S and S2D prediction, ongoing research, and future needs, providing an ideal basis for synthesizing current and emerging developments in these areas that promise to enhance future operational services. This article provides such a synthesis

DAMNACANTHAL IS A HIGHLY POTENT, SELECTIVE INHIBITOR OF P56(LCK) TYROSINE KINASE-ACTIVITY

Damnacanthal, an anthraquinone isolated from a plant extract, was found to be a potent, selective inhibitor of p561(lck) tyrosine kinase activity. The structure, potency, and selectivity of damnacanthal were confirmed by independent synthesis and testing. Damnacanthal exhibited an IC50 of 17 nM for inhibition of p56(lck) autophosphorylation and an IC50 of 620 nM for phosphorylation of an exogenous peptide by p56(lck). Damnacanthal had > 100-fold selectivity for p56(lck) over the serine/threonine kinases, protein kinase A and protein kinase C, and >40-fold selectivity for p56(lck) over four receptor tyrosine kinases. It also demonstrated modest (7-20-fold), but highly statistically significant, selectivity for p56(lck) over the homologous enzymes p60(src) and p59(fyn). Mechanistic studies demonstrated that damnacanthal was competitive with the peptide binding site, but mixed noncompetitive with the ATP site. Although damnacanthal contains a potentially reactive aldehyde moiety, equilibrium dialysis experiments demonstrated that significant imine formation between damnacanthal and amines occurred only at high concentrations of reactants. However, damnacanthal appeared to bind nonspecifically to membrane lipids and was not active in whole cell tyrosine kinase assays. Damnacanthal is the most patent, selective inhibitor of p56(lck) tyrosine kinase activity described to date and may represent the starting point for the identification of novel, selective inhibitors of p56(lck) which are active in whole cell as well as in cell-free systems