Daily Life of the Oldest Old

The purpose of this study was to investigate how very old persons-a representative sample of 129 noninstitutionalized 85-year-old Swedish persons with different patterns of adjustment-may live and experience daily life. The analysis of in-depth interviews showed that better adjusted participants enjoyed their freedom as retirees to form daily life at their own choosing. Within patterns of poorer adjustment, daily life was more influenced by other conditions than by the individual\u27s preferences. It was common to construct personal time-tables for keeping up self-control and regardless of the level of activity, most participants thought that time passed quickly. It is argued that older persons\u27 everyday activities, experiences and wishes should be thoroughly investigated and adjusted to when intervention programs for the elderly are planned

Evaluation of decentralized energy recovery from aquaculture sludge

Fiskeoppdrett er en bransje i vekst som følge av en global etterspørsel etter fett og proteiner. Laks dominerer den norske oppdrettsnæringen, og salget av laks har doblet seg fra 2012 til 2016. Laksen produseres i landbaserte settefiskanlegg før den overføres til merder i sjøen. Ved settefiskanlegg produseres slam. Slam består av fekalier og uspist fôr og inneholder næringsstoffer som fosfor og nitrogen. Disse næringsstoffene kan benyttes som gjødsel og de kan føre til eutrofiering om slammet slippes ut i vannmiljø. Målsetningen til denne oppgaven er å evaluere potensialet til lokal forbrenning av fiskeslam som en egnet avhendingsmetode. Potensialet blir vurdert på brennverdi, masse og energistrømmer, energigjenvinning, teknologiske løsninger og gjenbruk av aske. Forbrenning blir så sammenlignet med nøkkelparametere fra gjødsel- og biogassproduksjon. Som en del av oppgaven ble øvre brennverdien til fiskeslam bestemt til 18.5 MJ/kg ved hjelp av bombekalorimeter. Brennverdien ble brukt for å utarbeide et forslag til en forbrenningsprosess som demonstrer at fiskeslam har potensiale som biobrensel for lokal varmeproduksjon. Videre er det også kartlagt teknologi som uten store inngrep burde kunne benyttes til forbrenning av fiskeslam. Avhending av restproduktet fra forbrenningen, asken, ser ut til å være det største problemet knyttet til forbrenning av fiskeslam. Askemengde er estimert til å utgjøre 20 % av tørrstoffet til det forbrente slammet, og den kan trolig ikke brukes ubehandlet som gjødsel på grunn av tungmetallinnhold. Videre analyser på asken fra forbrenning av fiskeslam er foreslått for å bestemme fosforinnhold og tungmetallinnhold i ulike askefraksjoner. Dette vil kunne vise om fosforinnholdet i asken kan gjenvinnes ved separering av flygeasken. Lokal forbrenning av fiskeslam med energigjenvinning vurderes som en behandlingsmetode som er verdt å undersøke nærmere. Energigjenvinningen bør kunne redusere oppdrettsanleggets energiforbruk for oppvarming. Volumet på produktstrømmer fra forbrenning små, som begrenser kostnadene ved etterfølgende lagring og transport. Forbrenning med energigjenvinning kan derfor være aktuelt dersom det ikke finnes andre lokale disponeringsmuligheter.Salmon is the predominant species in Norwegian fish farming, and salmon sales have doubled from 2012 to 2016. Salmon are hatched and grown in land-based farms, before they are transferred to seacages. Sludge is produced in the land-based hatcheries and farms. The sludge consists of fecal matter and uneaten fish food, and contains nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus. The sludge can therefore be utilized as a fertilizer, and will lead to eutrophication if released to water bodies. The purpose of this report is to evaluate local incineration as a treatment method for fish sludge. The process is evaluated by considering the net calorific value of the sludge, the volume and application of the biproducts, the potential for heat generation, and available technology. Production of fertilizer and biogas are the prevailing methods of disposal for fish sludge, and the incineration process is therefore compared to these, weighting key parameters. The calorific value of fish sludge from “Senter for fiskeforsøk” was determined. An analysis using a calorimeter showed a calorific value of 18,5MJ/kg. This value is used to develop a proposed incineration and heat recovery process. The process demonstrates the potential for fish sludge to be used as biofuel in decentralized incineration with heat recovery. Available technology for use in the process is described in the report. The disposal of ash from the incineration process is problematic. Ash is estimated to constitute 20% of the mass of the incinerated sludge, and unprocessed ash will likely not be eligible for agricultural use, due to high concentrations of heavy metals. Further studies of the ash is recommended to establish the phosphorus and heavy metal concentration in the different fractions of ash. Such studies could determine if the phosphorus is recoverable by separating bottom ash from fly ash. Local incineration of fish sludge seems to warrant further study. Recovery of heat from the incineration should reduce the fish farms energy consumption for the purpose of heating. The reduction of solid mass resulting from the incineration will ease the storage and transportation. Incineration might therefore be attractive, especially if other possibilities of disposal does not exist.M-MP

Exponential Growth Bias of Infectious Diseases: Protocol for a Systematic Review

Background: Humans struggle to grasp the extent of exponential growth, which is essential to comprehend the spread of an infectious disease. Exponential growth bias is the tendency to linearize exponential functions when assessing them intuitively. Effective public health communication about the nonlinear nature of infectious diseases has strong implications for the public’s compliance with strict restrictions. However, there is a lack of synthesized knowledge on the communication of the exponential growth of infectious diseases and on the outcomes of exponential growth bias. Objective: This systematic review identifies, evaluates, and synthesizes the findings of empirical studies on exponential growth bias of infectious diseases. Methods: A systematic review will be conducted using the PRISMA-P (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocols) 2015 statement. Eligibility criteria include empirical studies of exponential growth bias of infectious diseases regardless of methodology. We include studies both with and without interventions/strategies. For information sources, we include the following five bibliographic databases: MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane Library, PsychINFO, and Web of Science Core Collection. The risk of bias will be assessed using RoB 2 (Risk of Bias 2) and STROBE (Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology). Data synthesis will be achieved through a narrative synthesis. Results: By February 2022, we included 11 experimental studies and 1 cross-sectional survey study. Preliminary themes identified are the presence of exponential growth bias, the effect of exponential growth bias, and communication strategies to mitigate exponential growth bias. Data extraction, narrative synthesis, and the risk of bias assessment are to be completed by February 2023. Conclusions: We anticipate that this systematic review will draw some lines related to how people comprehend and misperceive exponential growth and its consequences for infectious disease mitigation and communication. Furthermore, the study will conclude with the limitations of the research and suggestions for future research.publishedVersio

A Dense SNP-Based Linkage Map for Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar) Reveals extended Chromosome Homeologies and Striking Differences in Sex-Specific Recombination Patterns

Background: The Atlantic salmon genome is in the process of returning to a diploid state after undergoing awhole genome duplication (WGD) event between 25 and100 million years ago. Existing data on the proportion ofparalogous sequence variants (PSVs), multisite variants (MSVs) and other types of complex sequence variationsuggest that the rediplodization phase is far from over. The aims of this study were to construct a high densitylinkage map for Atlantic salmon, to characterize the extent of rediploidization and to improve our understandingof genetic differences between sexes in this species.Results: A linkage map for Atlantic salmon comprising 29 chromosomes and 5650 single nucleotidepolymorphisms (SNPs) was constructed using genotyping data from 3297 fish belonging to 143 families. Of these,2696 SNPs were generated from ESTs or other gene associated sequences. Homeologous chromosomal regionswere identified through the mapping of duplicated SNPs and through the investigation of syntenic relationshipsbetween Atlantic salmon and the reference genome sequence of the threespine stickleback (Gasterosteusaculeatus). The sex-specific linkage maps spanned a total of 2402.3 cM in females and 1746.2 cM in males,highlighting a difference in sex specific recombination rate (1.38:1) which is much lower than previously reportedin Atlantic salmon. The sexes, however, displayed striking differences in the distribution of recombination siteswithin linkage groups, with males showing recombination strongly localized to telomeres.Conclusion: The map presented here represents a valuable resource for addressing important questions of interestto evolution (the process of re-diploidization), aquaculture and salmonid life history biology and not least as aresource to aid the assembly of the forthcoming Atlantic salmon reference genome sequence

User involvement in adolescents’ mental healthcare: a systematic review

More than one out of ten adolescents suffer from mental illness at any given time. Still, there is limited knowledge about their involvement in mental healthcare. Adolescents have the right to be involved in decisions affecting their healthcare, but limited research focuses on their engagement and decision-making. Therefore, this systematic review aims to explore the existing experiences with, the effectiveness of, and safety issues associated with user involvement for adolescents’ mental healthcare at the individual and organizational level. A systematic literature review on user involvement in adolescents’ mental healthcare was carried out. A protocol pre-determined the eligibility criteria and search strategies, and established guidelines were used for data extraction, critical appraisal, and reporting of results. Quantitative studies were analysed individually due to heterogeneity of the studies, while qualitative studies were analysed using thematic synthesis. A total of 31 studies were included in the review. The experiences with user involvement were reported in 24 studies with three themes at the individual level: unilateral clinician control versus collaborative relationship, capacity and support for active involvement, the right to be involved; and two themes at the organizational level: involvement outcomes relevant to adolescents’ needs, conditions for optimal involvement. The effectiveness of user involvement was reported in seven studies documenting fragmented evidence related to different support structures to facilitate adolescents’ involvement. The safety associated with user involvement was not reported in any studies, yet a few examples related to potential risks associated with involvement of adolescents in decision-making and as consultants were mentioned.publishedVersio

A Linkage Map of the Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar) Based on EST-Derived SNP mMarkers

Background: The Atlantic salmon is a species of commercial and ecological significance. Like other salmonids, thespecies displays residual tetrasomy and a large difference in recombination rate between sexes. Linkage maps with fullgenome coverage, containing both type I and type II markers, are needed for progress in genomics. Furthermore, it isimportant to estimate levels of linkage disequilibrium (LD) in the species. In this study, we developed several hundredsingle nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers for the Atlantic salmon, and constructed male and female linkage mapscontaining SNP and microsatellite markers. We also investigated further the distribution of male and femalerecombination events across the genome, and estimated levels of LD between pairs of markers.Results: The male map had 29 linkage groups and was 390 cM long. The female map had 30 linkage groups as was 1983cM long. In total, the maps contained 138 microsatellite markers and 304 SNPs located within genes, most of which weresuccessfully annotated. The ratio of male to female recombination events was either close to zero or very large, indicatingthat there is little overlap between regions in which male and female crossovers occur. The female map is likely to haveclose to full genome coverage, while the majority of male linkage groups probably lack markers in telomeric regionswhere male recombination events occur. Levels of r2 increased with decreasing inter-marker distance in a bimodalfashion; increasing slowly from ~60 cM, and more rapidly more from ~12 cM. Long-ranging LD may be consequence ofrecent admixture in the population, the population being a \u27synthetic\u27 breeding population with contributions fromseveral distinct rivers. Levels of r2 dropped to half its maximum value (above baseline) within 15 cM, and were higherthan 0.2 above baseline for unlinked markers (\u27useful LD\u27) at inter-marker distances less than 5 cM.Conclusion: The linkage map presented here is an important resource for genetic, comparative, and physical mappingof the Atlantic salmon. The female map is likely to have a map coverage that is not far from complete, whereas the malemap length is likely to be significantly shorter than the true map, due to suboptimal marker coverage in the apparentlysmall physical regions where male crossovers occur. \u27Useful LD\u27 was found at inter-marker distances less than 5 cM