The Quakers of County Tipperary 1655-1924

The Quaker connection with County Tipperary lasted from their arrival shortly after the middle of the seventeenth century to the closure of their last meeting houses in Carrick-on-Suir and Clonmel in 1924. This thesis examines their history and attempts to evaluate the contribution they made to their adopted county. George Bancroft (1800- 89), an American historian, has stated that 'the rise of the people called Quakers is one of the memorable events in the history of man'. However extravagant this claim, Voltaire, to whom religion meant leading a good and useful life, observed of the Quakers 'the doctrines and history of such unusual people were worthy of the curiosity of a reasonable man'. Although he mocked their quaint speech and comical clothing, he was attracted to their plain lifestyle and to their simple moral and spiritual values. Previous studies of Irish Quakers have focused on communities that were either exclusively urban or rural. However, the Tipperary Quakers throughout their history always consisted of both fanners and traders. Hence this thesis, which examines that community, marks a new departure in Irish Quaker studies

Surface engineering through low temperature deposition of wear resistant layers by reactive magnetron sputter ion plating

The aim of this investigation was the deposition of hard» wear resistant titanium nitride (TiN) thin films, produced from a reactive magnetron sputter ion plating device, at high deposition rates and low substrate temperatures. An allied objective vas the understanding and development of experimental methods which would permit the deposition of titanium nitride-type layers on plastic. The early part of the work deals with the formation of TiN layers on high speed steel, at 500°C deposition temperature Modifications in equipment design and deposition procedures aided the formation of adherent TiN layers. The routine deposition of stoichiometric titanium nitride vas facilitated by a control feedback network The use of graded interfaces between the film and the substrate improved adhesion. Total gas pressure and the level of substrate bias affect film hardness and wear resistance. The next stage of the development process vas the deposition of TiN at approximately 250°C substrate temperature. The main source of substrate heating, in the case of an indirectly cooled magnetron, was identified as the heat liberated from the target. The use of a directly cooled magnetron configuration resulted in lover substrate temperatures. With this device, TiN films vere formed on high speed steel at high deposition rates and with good adhesion. The increased ion current to the substrate is, tentatively, attributed to an extended plasma region associated with the directly cooled configuration Metastable T^N phases are formed from the combination of high deposition rates, low substrate temperatures (250°C) and increased ion bombardment to the substrate. These TiN films, however, are softer and less wear resistant than those produced at 500°C. The final part of the investigation centred around the deposition of TiN type layers onto plastic T1 -T1 N and AI-T1 -T1N layered structures were deposited onto polycarbonate plastic at 100°C. An experimental design approach was employed to develop adhering coatings. A slight partial pressure of oxygen during the initial Ti deposition improves film adhesion. The use of the aluminium interface improves film reflectivity, cosmetic appearance and adhesion. This aluminium interface makes the multilayer structure more susceptible to physical and chemical attack. The wear resistance of the coated plastic is 2 to 4 times greater than the base plastic material

Impact of UNCLOS III on U. S. Naval Operations

This paper briefly summarizes the development of the Third United Nations Law of the Sea Conference (UNCLOS III)and the influence that national security had on its development.The missions of the navy as promulgated by Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Elmo Zumwalt are: Strategic Deterrence;Sea Control; Projection of Force Ashore; and Naval Presence. The effect of the Draft Convention, InformalText (DC IT) provisions in five areas are discussed. These areas are: Transit of International Straits; Archipelagos;the Territorial Sea; the Exclusive Economic Zone; and the Deep Seabed

A Methodology for the Examination of the Effectiveness of Secure Erasure Tools Running On Windows XP - Research in Progress

Currently, there appears to be a lack of academic research in the area of testing the efficacy of secure erasure applications and utilities in regard to the activities of an average user in a home or small business context. This research in progress aims to develop a testing methodology that will provide a forensically sound base for which to analyse these tools. It involves the installation of various Internet related applications (for example browsers, instant messaging software and download clients), and the use of these applications for typical Internet activities (e.g. internet banking, instant messaging, web browsing and other activities that would be conducted by an average user). Following the creation of the simulated history, this paper discusses a practical testing methodology that includes the creation of image files, the allocation of these image files, and the use of forensic tools to examine disk contents before and after the execution of the secure erasure applications on the simulated user history. Additionally, a reporting mechanism has been formulated that will allow test results to be efficiently compiled and compared to form valid conclusions about the effectiveness of each erasure utility on internet history

Immune cell census in murine atherosclerosis: cytometry by time of flight illuminates vascular myeloid cell diversity

Aims: Atherosclerosis is characterised by the abundant infiltration of myeloid cells starting at early stages of disease. Myeloid cells are key players in vascular immunity during atherogenesis. However, the subsets of vascular myeloid cells have eluded resolution due to shared marker expression and atypical heterogeneity in vascular tissues. We applied the high-dimensionality of mass cytometry to the study of myeloid cell subsets in atherosclerosis. Methods and Results: Apolipoprotein E-deficient (ApoE-/-) mice were fed a chow or a high fat (western) diet for 12 weeks. Single cell aortic preparations were probed with a panel of 35 metal-conjugated antibodies using Cytometry by time of flight (CyTOF). Clustering of marker expression on live CD45+ cells from the aortas of ApoE-/- mice identified 13 broad populations of leucocytes. Monocyte, macrophage, type 1 and type 2 conventional dendritic cell (cDC1 and cDC2), plasmacytoid dendritic cell (pDC), neutrophil, eosinophil, B cell, CD4+ and CD8+ T cell, γδ T cell, natural killer (NK) cell and innate lymphoid (ILC) cell populations accounted for approximately 95% of the live CD45+ aortic cells. Automated clustering algorithms applied to the Lin-CD11blo-hi cells revealed 20 clusters of myeloid cells. Comparison between chow and high fat fed animals revealed increases in monocytes (both Ly6C+ and Ly6C-), pDC and a CD11c+ macrophage subset with high fat feeding. Concomitantly, the proportions of CD206+ CD169+ subsets of macrophages were significantly reduced as were cDC2. Conclusions: A CyTOF-based comprehensive mapping of the immune cell subsets within atherosclerotic aortas from ApoE-/- mice offers tools for myeloid cell discrimination within the vascular compartment and it reveals that high fat feeding skews the myeloid cell repertoire towards inflammatory monocyte-macrophage populations rather than resident macrophage phenotypes and cDC2 during atherogenesis

Biologic Agents—A Panacea for Inflammatory Arthritis or Not?

Aim. To describe the retention rates for biological therapies in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), psoriatic arthritis (PsA), and ankylosing spondylitis (AS) in a clinical setting. Methods. All patients managed in a dedicated biological therapy clinic in a teaching hospital in Australia were assessed for continuation on biological treatments and reasons for switching to an alternative biological agent or cessation of treatment. Results. There was a lower retention rate for RA patients on biological therapies compared to PsA and AS patients and the retention rate for RA patients was lower than that reported in RCTs. Conclusions. The retention rate on biological therapies for RA patients was lower in the clinic setting than what is reported in RCTs. The reasons for the lower retention rate in the clinical setting are discussed but no clear determinants for nonresponse to biological agents were identifiable. These agents have very limited steroid sparing effects

Variability in Ultrasound Education among Emergency Medicine Residencies

Objective: Education in emergency ultrasound (EUS) has become an essential part of emergency medicine (EM) resident training. In 2009, comprehensive residency training guidelines were published to ensure proficiency in ultrasound education. The American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) recommends that 150 ultrasound exams be performed for physician competency. Our goal is to evaluate the current ultrasound practices among EM residency programs and assess the need for further formalization of EUS training.Methods: We generated a survey using an online survey tool and administered via the internet. The survey consisted of 25 questions that included multiple choice and free text answers. These online survey links were sent via email to EM ultrasound directors at all 149 American College of Graduate Medical Education EM residency programs in April 2008. We surveyed programs regarding EUS curriculum and residency proficiency requirements and descriptive statistics were used to report the survey findings.Results: Sixty-five residency programs responded to the survey. The average number of ultrasound exams required by programs for EUS competency was 137 scans. However, the majority of programs 42/65 (64%) require their residents to obtain 150 scans or greater for competency. Fifty-one out of 64 (79%) programs reported having a structured ultrasound curriculum while 14/64 (21%) of programs reported that EUS training is primarily resident self-directed. In terms of faculty credentialing, 29/62 (47%) of residency programs have greater than 50% of faculty credentialed. Forty-four out of 61 (72%) programs make EUS a required rotation. Thirty-four out of 63 (54%) programs felt that they were meeting all their goals for resident EUS education.Conclusion: Currently discrepancies exist between EM residency programs in ultrasound curriculum and perceived needs for achieving proficiency in EUS. Although a majority of residency programs require 150 ultrasound exams or more to achieve resident competency, overall the average number of scans required by all programs is 137 exams. This number is less than that recommended by ACEP for physician competency. These data suggest that guidelines are needed to help standardize ultrasound training for all EM residency programs. [West J Emerg Med 2010; 11(4):314-318.

Is interviewer support associated with the reduced reluctance and enhanced informativeness of alleged child abuse victims?

Child maltreatment victims are often reluctant to report abuse when formally interviewed. Evidence-based guidelines like the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) Standard Investigative Interview Protocol do not adequately address such reluctance because they are focused on cognitive rather than socio-emotional strategies. The present study was designed to determine whether the Revised NICHD Protocol, which emphasizes supportive interviewing more than the Standard Protocol does, might predict increases in the overall informativeness and reductions in the reluctance of alleged victims. A total of 254 interviews, 166 using the Revised Protocol and 88 using the Standard Protocol, were conducted with 4.06- to 13.98-year-old children (M = 9.20, SD = 2.49) who disclosed multiple incidents of physical abuse by their parents and were thus expected to be more reluctant than victims of extrafamilial abuse. We coded indices of interviewer support and question types, children’s reluctance, and informativeness in each utterance during the substantive phases of the interviews. The Revised Protocol was associated with better interviewer support and questioning as well as reduced reluctance and increased informativeness on the part of the children. These findings document the value of training interviewers to attend to the socio-emotional needs of suspected abuse victims during investigative interviews.Nuffield and Jacobs Foundations, Haruv Institut

Study protocol for a randomised controlled trial of internet-based cognitive-behavioural therapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder

BACKGROUND Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a common chronic psychiatric disorder that constitutes a leading cause of disability. Although Cognitive-Behaviour Therapy (CBT) has been shown to be an effective treatment for OCD, this specialised treatment is unavailable to many due to access issues and the social stigma associated with seeing a mental health specialist. Internet-based psychological treatments have shown to provide effective, accessible and affordable treatment for a range of anxiety disorders, and two Randomised Controlled Trials (RCTs) have demonstrated the efficacy and acceptability of internet-based CBT (iCBT) for OCD, as compared to waitlist or supportive therapy. Although these initial findings are promising, they do not isolate the specific effect of iCBT. This paper details the study protocol for the first randomised control trial evaluating the efficacy of therapist-assisted iCBT for OCD, as compared to a matched control intervention; internet-based therapist-assisted progressive relaxation training (iPRT). It will aim to examine whether therapist-assisted iCBT is an acceptable and efficacious treatment, and to examine how effectiveness is influenced by patient characteristics. METHOD/DESIGN A randomised controlled trial using repeated measures with two arms (intervention and matched control) will be used to evaluate the efficacy and acceptability of iCBT for OCD. The RCT will randomise 212 Australian adults with a primary diagnosis of OCD into either the active intervention or control condition, for 12 weeks duration. Outcomes for participants in both study arms will be assessed at baseline and post-intervention. Participants in iCBT will be further assessed at six month follow-up, while participants in the control condition will be crossed over to receive the iCBT intervention and reassessed at post-intervention and six month follow-up. The primary outcome will be clinically significant change in obsessive-compulsive symptom scores. DISCUSSION This will be the first known therapist assisted internet-based trial of a comprehensive CBT treatment for OCD as compared to a matched control intervention. Demonstrating the efficacy of an internet-based treatment for OCD will allow the development of models of care for broad-based access to an evidence-based but complex treatment.Research funded by the NHMRC (Project Grant 620506) awarded to Kyrios, M., Nedeljkovic, M., Moulding, R., Klein, B. & Austin, D

Mechanisms by which sialylated milk oligosaccharides impact bone biology in a gnotobiotic mouse model of infant undernutrition

Undernutrition in children is a pressing global health problem, manifested in part by impaired linear growth (stunting). Current nutritional interventions have been largely ineffective in overcoming stunting, emphasizing the need to obtain better understanding of its underlying causes. Treating Bangladeshi children with severe acute malnutrition with therapeutic foods reduced plasma levels of a biomarker of osteoclastic activity without affecting biomarkers of osteoblastic activity or improving their severe stunting. To characterize interactions among the gut microbiota, human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs), and osteoclast and osteoblast biology, young germ-free mice were colonized with cultured bacterial strains from a 6-mo-old stunted infant and fed a diet mimicking that consumed by the donor population. Adding purified bovine sialylated milk oligosaccharides (S-BMO) with structures similar to those in human milk to this diet increased femoral trabecular bone volume and cortical thickness, reduced osteoclasts and their bone marrow progenitors, and altered regulators of osteoclastogenesis and mediators of Th2 responses. Comparisons of germ-free and colonized mice revealed S-BMO-dependent and microbiota-dependent increases in cecal levels of succinate, increased numbers of small intestinal tuft cells, and evidence for activation of a succinate-induced tuft cell signaling pathway linked to Th2 immune responses. A prominent fucosylated HMO, 2'-fucosyllactose, failed to elicit these changes in bone biology, highlighting the structural specificity of the S-BMO effects. These results underscore the need to further characterize the balance between, and determinants of, osteoclastic and osteoblastic activity in stunted infants/children, and suggest that certain milk oligosaccharides may have therapeutic utility in this setting