Honour based violence and the multi-agency approach in Nottingham: response of local agencies to honour based violence

The focus of the research was to gain an understanding of the current levels of HBV in Nottingham and the nature of the multi-agency response. The main aim of the research was to gain an understanding of practitioners' work with a range of issues relating to honour based violence (HBV)within partnership agencies. The revised Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy Action Plan published by the government in2010 (Home Office, 2010) gave precedence to a co-ordinated approach to ending all forms of violence against women including HBV and forced marriage

Improved charge injection device and a focal plane interface electronics board for stellar tracking

An improved Charge Injection Device (CID) stellar tracking sensor and an operating sensor in a control/readout electronics board were developed. The sensor consists of a shift register scanned, 256x256 CID array organized for readout of 4x4 subarrays. The 4x4 subarrays can be positioned anywhere within the 256x256 array with a 2 pixel resolution. This allows continuous tracking of a number of stars simultaneously since nine pixels (3x3) centered on any star can always be read out. Organization and operation of this sensor and the improvements in design and semiconductor processing are described. A hermetic package incorporating an internal thermoelectric cooler assembled using low temperature solders was developed. The electronics board, which contains the sensor drivers, amplifiers, sample hold circuits, multiplexer, analog to digital converter, and the sensor temperature control circuits, is also described. Packaged sensors were evaluated for readout efficiency, spectral quantum efficiency, temporal noise, fixed pattern noise, and dark current. Eight sensors along with two tracker electronics boards were completed, evaluated, and delivered

On the quasi-steady state assumption applied to Michaelis-Menten and suicide substrate reactions with diffusion

We consider a recent extension to the validity of the quasi-steady-state assumption (QSSA) which includes the case where the ratio of the initial enzyme to substrate concentration is not necessarily small. We extend the analysis to include diffusion of substrate, in which case the initial enzyme to substrate ratio is spatially dependent and no longer constant. We show that the region in which the QSSA holds depends on the nature of the enzyme-substrate reaction: if the enzyme is inactivated by the substrate then the QSSA holds in a growing disc; if the enzyme is unchanged after reaction then the QSSA holds in a ring travelling through space

Accurate Adiabatic Connection Curve Beyond the Physical Interaction Strength

The adiabatic connection curve of density functional theory (DFT) is accurately calculated beyond the physical interaction strength for Hooke's atom, two interacting electrons in a harmonic well potential. Extrapolation of the accurate curve to the infinite coupling limit agrees well with the strictly correlated electron (SCE) hypothesis but the approach to this limit is more complex. The interaction strength interpolation is shown to be a good, but not perfect, fit to the adiabatic curve. Arguments about the locality of functionals and convexity of the adiabatic connection curve are examined in this regime.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figure

Suicide substrate reaction-diffusion equations: varying the source

The suicide substrate reaction is a model for certain enzyme-inhibiting drugs. This reaction system is examined assuming that the substrate diffuses freely while the enzyme remains fixed. Two sets of initial and boundary conditions are examined: one modelling an instantaneous point source, akin to an injection of substrate, the other, a continuous point source, akin to a continuing influx, or intravenous drip, of substrate. The quasi-steady-state assumption is applied to obtain analytical solutions for a limited parameter space. Finally, further applications of numerical and analytical experimentation on pharmaceutical mechanisms are described

On the kinetics of suicide substrates

We consider a realistic suicide substrate reaction which can be represented by four rate equations for the concentrations of the various molecules as functions of time. We present a general procedure to obtain accurate, approximate solutions analytically in terms of the rate equation parameters. This systematic technique provides more accurate approximations to the exact (numerical) solutions than other approximate methods which have been proposed based on a pseudo-steady state hypothesis

A Component Based Heuristic Search Method with Evolutionary Eliminations

Nurse rostering is a complex scheduling problem that affects hospital personnel on a daily basis all over the world. This paper presents a new component-based approach with evolutionary eliminations, for a nurse scheduling problem arising at a major UK hospital. The main idea behind this technique is to decompose a schedule into its components (i.e. the allocated shift pattern of each nurse), and then to implement two evolutionary elimination strategies mimicking natural selection and natural mutation process on these components respectively to iteratively deliver better schedules. The worthiness of all components in the schedule has to be continuously demonstrated in order for them to remain there. This demonstration employs an evaluation function which evaluates how well each component contributes towards the final objective. Two elimination steps are then applied: the first elimination eliminates a number of components that are deemed not worthy to stay in the current schedule; the second elimination may also throw out, with a low level of probability, some worthy components. The eliminated components are replenished with new ones using a set of constructive heuristics using local optimality criteria. Computational results using 52 data instances demonstrate the applicability of the proposed approach in solving real-world problems.Comment: 27 pages, 4 figure

Analysis of GOES imagery and digitized data for the SEV-UPS period, August 1979

In support of the Southeastern Virginia Urban Plume Study (SEV-UPS), GOES satellite imagery was analyzed for the month of August 1979. The analyzed GOES images provide an additional source of meteorological input useful in the evaluation of air quality data collected during the month long period of the SEV-UPS experiment. In addition to the imagery analysis, GOES digitized data were analyzed for the period of August 6 to 11, during which a regional haze pattern was detectable in the imagery. The results of the study indicate that the observed haze patterns correspond closely with areas shown in surface based measurements to have reduced visibilities and elevated pollution levels. Moreover, the results of the analysis of digitized data indicate that digital reflectance counts can be directly related to haze intensity both over land and ocean. The model results agree closely with the observed GOES digital reflectance counts, providing further indication that satellite remote sensing can be a useful tool for monitoring regional elevated pollution episodes

A combined R-matrix eigenstate basis set and finite-differences propagation method for the time-dependent Schr\"{od}dinger equation: the one-electron case

In this work we present the theoretical framework for the solution of the time-dependent Schr\"{o}dinger equation (TDSE) of atomic and molecular systems under strong electromagnetic fields with the configuration space of the electron's coordinates separated over two regions, that is regions $I$ and $II$. In region $I$ the solution of the TDSE is obtained by an R-matrix basis set representation of the time-dependent wavefunction. In region $II$ a grid representation of the wavefunction is considered and propagation in space and time is obtained through the finite-differences method. It appears this is the first time a combination of basis set and grid methods has been put forward for tackling multi-region time-dependent problems. In both regions, a high-order explicit scheme is employed for the time propagation. While, in a purely hydrogenic system no approximation is involved due to this separation, in multi-electron systems the validity and the usefulness of the present method relies on the basic assumption of R-matrix theory, namely that beyond a certain distance (encompassing region $I$) a single ejected electron is distinguishable from the other electrons of the multi-electron system and evolves there (region II) effectively as a one-electron system. The method is developed in detail for single active electron systems and applied to the exemplar case of the hydrogen atom in an intense laser field.Comment: 13 pages, 6 figures, submitte