Furthering decolonization and reconciliation via a portable planetarium

The William J. McCallion Planetarium at McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada (established 1949), is pleased to share details of the first year of outreach initiatives and statistics from its new small (6m diameter) portable planetarium. The portable planetarium, purchased with funding from the Faculty of Science, was launched in June 2022, and has the primary goal of extending astronomy-based education and outreach initiatives to underserved and underrepresented communities off campus (to supplement the fixed planetarium on campus). The portable planetarium has also allowed us to continue our reconciliation efforts and astronomy collaborations with local Indigenous communities, resulting in the co-creation of one show and further shows in development. This presentation will highlight the co-creation process, successes and challenges we have experienced during our first months of operation, and will welcome conversations from communities we may be able to visit and/or from other institutes who currently have or are seeking to set up similar programs

A movement for movement:an exploratory study of primary healthcare professionals’ perspectives on implementing the Royal College of General Practitioners’ active practice charter initiative

Background: Regular physical activity (PA) results in extensive physical, psychological, and social benefits. Despite primary care being a key point of influence for PA behaviours in the UK, research indicates poor application of PA interventions in this context. To address this, the Royal College of General Practitioners’ (RCGP) developed and implemented the Active Practice Charter (APC). The aim of the study was to evaluate the perceived impact and acceptability of the APC initiative from the perspective of primary healthcare professionals (PHPs). Methods: An online exploratory cross-sectional survey was designed to assess the perceived impact, experiences, and challenges of the APC initiative, from the perspective of PHPs. The survey was distributed by the RCGP via email to 184 registered APC practices across the UK. Results: Responses were reviewed from staff (n = 33) from 21 APC practices. Initiatives used by APC practices included: educational programmes, partnerships with PA providers, referral systems, and infrastructure investment. Perceived benefits included: increased awareness about PA, staff cohesion, and improved well-being. However, staff felt the APC had limited effect due to implementation barriers, including: a lack of engagement, time, resources, and funding. Conclusion: This is the first evaluation of any nationwide UK-based initiative engaging GP practices in promoting PA. Acknowledging the limitations in response rate, although support exists for the RCGP APC, the evaluation highlights challenges to its implementation. Nonetheless, the wide reach of the RCGP, combined with the cited staff and patient benefits, demonstrates the significant potential of the APC initiative. Given the need to address physical inactivity nationally, further development the APC offers a possible solution, with further research required to overcome the challenges to implementation.</p

Further Definition of the Mass-Metallicity Relation in Globular Cluster Systems Around Brightest Cluster Galaxies

We combine the globular cluster data for fifteen Brightest Cluster Galaxies and use this material to trace the mass-metallicity relations (MMR) in their globular cluster systems (GCSs). This work extends previous studies which correlate the properties of the MMR with those of the host galaxy. Our combined data sets show a mean trend for the metal-poor (MP) subpopulation which corresponds to a scaling of heavy-element abundance with cluster mass Z ~ M^(0.30+/-0.05). No trend is seen for the metal-rich (MR) subpopulation which has a scaling relation that is consistent with zero. We also find that the scaling exponent is independent of the GCS specific frequency and host galaxy luminosity, except perhaps for dwarf galaxies. We present new photometry in (g',i') obtained with Gemini/GMOS for the globular cluster populations around the southern giant ellipticals NGC 5193 and IC 4329. Both galaxies have rich cluster populations which show up as normal, bimodal sequences in the colour-magnitude diagram. We test the observed MMRs and argue that they are statistically real, and not an artifact caused by the method we used. We also argue against asymmetric contamination causing the observed MMR as our mean results are no different from other contamination-free studies. Finally, we compare our method to the standard bimodal fitting method (KMM or RMIX) and find our results are consistent. Interpretation of these results is consistent with recent models for globular cluster formation in which the MMR is determined by GC self-enrichment during their brief formation period.Comment: 35 pages, 20 figures. Accepted by Astronomical Journal. Complete preprint including high resolution figures available at http://www.physics.mcmaster.ca/~cockcroft/MMRpape

Use of social audits to examine unofficial payments in government health services: experience in South Asia, Africa, and Europe

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Unofficial payments in health services around the world are widespread and as varied as the health systems in which they occur. We reviewed the main lessons from social audits of petty corruption in health services in South Asia (Bangladesh, Pakistan), Africa (Uganda and South Africa) and Europe (Baltic States).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The social audits varied in purpose and scope. All covered representative sample communities and involved household interviews, focus group discussions, institutional reviews of health facilities, interviews with service providers and discussions with health authorities. Most audits questioned households about views on health services, perceived corruption in the services, and use of government and other health services. Questions to service users asked about making official and unofficial payments, amounts paid, service delivery indicators, and satisfaction with the service.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Contextual differences between the countries affected the forms of petty corruption and factors related to it. Most households in all countries held negative views about government health services and many perceived these services as corrupt. There was little evidence that better off service users were more likely to make an unofficial payment, or that making such a payment was associated with better or quicker service; those who paid unofficially to health care workers were not more satisfied with the service. In South Asia, where we conducted repeated social audits, only a minority of households chose to use government health services and their use declined over time in favour of other providers. Focus groups indicated that reasons for avoiding government health services included the need to pay for supposedly free services and the non-availability of medicines in facilities, often perceived as due to diversion of the supplied medicines.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Unofficial expenses for medical care represent a disproportionate cost for vulnerable families; the very people who need to make use of supposedly free government services, and are a barrier to the use of these services. Patient dissatisfaction due to petty corruption may contribute to abandonment of government health services. The social audits informed plans for tackling corruption in health services.</p

Cardiovascular and musculskeletal co-morbidities in patients with alpha 1 antitrypsin deficiency

Background Determining the presence and extent of co-morbidities is fundamental in assessing patients with chronic respiratory disease, where increased cardiovascular risk, presence of osteoporosis and low muscle mass have been recognised in several disease states. We hypothesised that the systemic consequences are evident in a further group of subjects with COPD due to Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency (A1ATD), yet are currently under-recognised. Methods We studied 19 patients with PiZZ A1ATD COPD and 20 age, sex and smoking matched controls, all subjects free from known cardiovascular disease. They underwent spirometry, haemodynamic measurements including aortic pulse wave velocity (aPWV), an independent predictor or cardiovascular risk, dual energy X-ray absorptiometry to determine body composition and bone mineral density. Results The aPWV was greater in patients: 9.9(2.1) m/s than controls: 8.5(1.6) m/s, p = 0.03, despite similar mean arterial pressure (MAP). The strongest predictors of aPWV were age, FEV1% predicted and MAP (all p < 0.01). Osteoporosis was present in 8/19 patients (2/20 controls) and was previously unsuspected in 7 patients. The fat free mass and bone mineral density were lower in patients than controls (p < 0.001). Conclusions Patients with A1ATD related COPD have increased aortic stiffness suggesting increased risk of cardiovascular disease and evidence of occult musculoskeletal changes, all likely to contribute hugely to overall morbidity and mortality

Hybrid Organic-Inorganic Coordination Complexes as Tunable Optical Response Materials.

Novel lead and bismuth dipyrido complexes have been synthesized and characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, which shows their structures to be directed by highly oriented π-stacking of planar fully conjugated organic ligands. Optical band gaps are influenced by the identity of both the organic and inorganic component. Density functional theory calculations show optical excitation leads to exciton separation between inorganic and organic components. Using UV-vis, photoluminescence, and X-ray photoemission spectroscopies, we have determined the materials' frontier energy levels and show their suitability for photovoltaic device fabrication by use of electron- and hole-transport materials such as TiO2 and spiro-OMeTAD respectively. Such organic/inorganic hybrid materials promise greater electronic tunability than the inflexible methylammonium lead iodide structure through variation of both the metal and organic components

The M33 Globular Cluster System with PAndAS Data: The Last Outer Halo Cluster?

We use CFHT/MegaCam data to search for outer halo star clusters in M33 as part of the Pan-Andromeda Archaeological Survey (PAndAS). This work extends previous studies out to a projected radius of 50 kpc and covers over 40 square degrees. We find only one new unambiguous star cluster in addition to the five previously known in the M33 outer halo (10 kpc <= r <= 50 kpc). Although we identify 2440 cluster candidates of various degrees of confidence from our objective image search procedure, almost all of these are likely background contaminants, mostly faint unresolved galaxies. We measure the luminosity, color and structural parameters of the new cluster in addition to the five previously-known outer halo clusters. At a projected radius of 22 kpc, the new cluster is slightly smaller, fainter and redder than all but one of the other outer halo clusters, and has g' ~ 19.9, (g'-i') ~ 0.6, concentration parameter c ~ 1.0, a core radius r_c ~ 3.5 pc, and a half-light radius r_h ~ 5.5 pc. For M33 to have so few outer halo clusters compared to M31 suggests either tidal stripping of M33's outer halo clusters by M31, or a very different, much calmer accretion history of M33.Comment: 37 pages, 9 figures. Accepted by the Astrophysical Journa

Prosthetics services in Uganda : a series of studies to inform the design of a low cost, but fit-for-purpose, body-powered prosthesis

The majority of people with upper limb absence (PWULA) live in lower, or middle-income countries (LMICs). However, efforts to develop improved prostheses have largely focused on electrically powered devices, sustainable deployment of which, in LMICs, is difficult. In the ‘Fit-for-purpose, affordable body-powered prostheses’ project, teams from the UK, Uganda and Jordan are developing mechanically-operated prostheses, optimised for LMICs, and establishing local methods for fabrication, fitting and evaluation. Here we first report on preliminary studies aimed at grounding the project in the reality of current prosthetics services and the experiences of people with limb absence in Uganda. Finally, we outline our ongoing work in the context of our findings. In our first two studies we reviewed current prosthetics and associated repair services. An issue which came up repeatedly was the difficulty faced by orthopaedic technologists in accessing componentry/materials. All specialised prosthetics components and materials are imported, often at a high cost. Purchasing does not appear to be well coordinated between centres, meaning potential economies of scale are not being fully exploited. Although there is supposed to be government funding for prosthetics, in practice budgets are often inadequate and a reliance on donations is common. The resource limitations mean Orthopaedic Technologists often resort to ad-hoc solutions; unsurprisingly perhaps, failures in prostheses were reported. In particular, lamination-based socket manufacture is very difficult, given the complexity (and cost) of the processes involved. Repair services are also limited, in part also due to problems accessing materials/components. Despite (or in part, as a result of) these challenges, the orthopaedic technologists are generally an extremely resourceful and multi-skilled group and there is genuine enthusiasm to see services improve. Further, there is a growth in interest and capabilities in the area of medical device innovation. In the third of our studies, we interviewed 17 PWULA and present preliminary results from the analysis of a subset of five participants. Firstly, we found that only 2 of the participants reported experience with using an upper limb prosthesis, again supporting the picture which emerged from the other studies. The findings illustrate the emergence of four key themes: a) attitude towards disability; b) barriers to prosthesis use; c) coping without a prosthesis; and d) communication with other PWULA. Although attitudes to those with limb loss varied, participants reported impacts in terms of social isolation and a mixed experience of emotions that appeared predominantly negative; barriers to prosthesis use were broader than just cost and functionality, and included a lack of training and psychological support; given that it is difficult to access an upper limb prosthesis, PWULA have found ways to perform daily life activities without relying on one; finally, most PWULA find the suggestion of communicating with other people with the same experience appealing. In our project we are addressing some of the issues found in the preliminary studies. To make socket manufacture less dependent on access to imported materials and specialised equipment, we are investigating the development of lattice-style, adjustable sockets, made from locally available materials. We are also investigating alternatives to the traditional harness-controlled, body-powered prosthetic hands. Given that clinicians have no objective means of evaluating the value of the prosthesis to their clients, we are testing the use of low-cost digital monitoring tools. We are also exploring the potential value of using mobile-phones to reduce the isolation of PWULA. Finally, we are exploring how these innovations may be translated into the Ugandan health setting

Globular Cluster Systems in Brightest Cluster Galaxies: A Near-Universal Luminosity Function?

We present the first results from our HST Brightest Cluster Galaxy (BCG) survey of seven central supergiant cluster galaxies and their globular cluster (GC) systems. We measure a total of 48000 GCs in all seven galaxies, representing the largest single GC database. We find that a log-normal shape accurately matches the observed luminosity function (LF) of the GCs down to the GCLF turnover point, which is near our photometric limit. In addition, the LF has a virtually identical shape in all seven galaxies. Our data underscore the similarity in the formation mechanism of massive star clusters in diverse galactic environments. At the highest luminosities (log L > 10^7 L_Sun) we find small numbers of "superluminous" objects in five of the galaxies; their luminosity and color ranges are at least partly consistent with those of UCDs (Ultra-Compact Dwarfs). Lastly, we find preliminary evidence that in the outer halo (R > 20 kpc), the LF turnover point shows a weak dependence on projected distance, scaling as L_0 ~ R^-0.2, while the LF dispersion remains nearly constant.Comment: To appear in Astrophysical Journal, December 201