UK regional scale modelling of natural geohazards and climate change

For over 10 years, the British Geological Survey (BGS) has been investigating geotechnical and mineralogical factors controlling volume change behaviour of UK clay soils and mudrocks. A strong understanding of the relationship between these parameters and the clays' shrink-swell properties has been developed. More recently, partly resulting from concerns of users of this knowledge, a study of the relationships between climate change and shrink-swell behaviour over the last 30 years has been carried out. Information on subsidence insurance claims has been provided by the Association of British Insurers (ABI) and the UK Meteorological Office (UKMO) historical climate station data has also been utilised. This is being combined with the BGS's GeoSure national geohazard data, to build a preliminary GIS model to provide an understanding of the susceptibility of the Tertiary London Clay to climate change. This paper summarises the data analysis and identifies future work for model construction and refinement

Reorganizing for Transformational Change: The 21st Century Research Library at a Flagship Public University

Beginning in November 2010 and culminating in February 2012, the University of Colorado Boulder Libraries began planning a significant structural reorganization. Local, pragmatic drivers for the change included retirements at the executive level and the loss of professional librarian lines due to the Great Recession of 2008. But other, more important catalysts existed and are driving similar reorganization efforts in research libraries across the country. The increasingly interdisciplinary, digital, and inter-institutional nature of scholarship, research and teaching requires a more flexible, team-managed research library. Dramatic shifts in how institutions of higher education are funded are also fueling the need to reevaluate organizational structures. This article will explore the process, strategy, and on-going efforts to recreate the research library at the University of Colorado Boulder

A Large Area Fiber Optic Gyroscope on multiplexed fiber network

We describe a fiber optical gyroscope based on the Sagnac effect realized on a multiplexed telecom fiber network. Our loop encloses an area of 20 km2 and coexists with Internet data traffic. This Sagnac interferometer achieves a sensitivity of about (10-8 rad/s)/sqrt(Hz), thus approaching ring laser gyroscopes without using narrow linewidth laser nor sophisticated optics. The proposed gyroscope is sensitive enough for seismic applications, opening new possibilities for this kind of optical fiber sensors

Distributed optical fibre sensing in synthetic fibre ropes and cables

Distributed strain measurements on synthetic fibre ropes as used in marine applications are reported. The ropes incorporate single mode fibre-optic sensors for strain measurement. A Brillouin-amplification-based distributed strain measuring system has been utilised to interrogate the fibre sensors incorporated into a parallel yarn aramid rope. Initial results are presented to conclusively demonstrate the technical feasibility of the approach

Identification and assessment of geohazards affecting pipelines and urban areas

The paper addresses methods and criteria of risk assessment associated with land subsidence threatening pipelines, buildings, and constructions. Currently, there are some practical issues relating to geohazards that should be taken into account while constructing a pipeline. The article provides comparison data on the effects of Spitak earthquake and the natural disaster in Neftegorsk in terms of geohazards impact on the pipeline systems. The suggested risk assessment procedure embraces a wide range of aspects: from soil properties to economic and management issues

Fractional modeling dynamics of HIV and CD4+ T-cells during primary infection

In this paper, we introduce fractional-order into a model of HIV-1 infection of CD4+ T cells. We study the effect of the changing the average number of viral particles N with different sets of initial conditions on the dynamics of the presented model. Generalized Euler method (GEM) will be used to find a numerical solution of the HIV-1 infection fractional order model

In silico design of supramolecules from their precursors: Odd–even effects in cage-forming reactions

We synthesize a series of imine cage molecules where increasing the chain length of the alkanediamine precursor results in an odd–even alternation between [2 + 3] and [4 + 6] cage macrocycles. A computational procedure is developed to predict the thermodynamically preferred product and the lowest energy conformer, hence rationalizing the observed alternation and the 3D cage structures, based on knowledge of the precursors alone

Development of an in vitro periodontal biofilm model for assessing antimicrobial and host modulatory effects of bioactive molecules

Background: Inflammation within the oral cavity occurs due to dysregulation between microbial biofilms and the host response. Understanding how different oral hygiene products influence inflammatory properties is important for the development of new products. Therefore, creation of a robust host-pathogen biofilm platform capable of evaluating novel oral healthcare compounds is an attractive option. We therefore devised a multi-species biofilm co-culture model to evaluate the naturally derived polyphenol resveratrol (RSV) and gold standard chlorhexidine (CHX) with respect to anti-biofilm and anti-inflammatory properties.<p></p> Methods: An in vitro multi-species biofilm containing <i>S. mitis, F. nucleatum, P. Gingivalis</i> and <i>A. Actinomycetemcomitans</i> was created to represent a disease-associated biofilm and the oral epithelial cell in OKF6-TERT2. Cytotoxicity studies were performed using RSV and CHX. Multi-species biofilms were either treated with either molecule, or alternatively epithelial cells were treated with these prior to biofilm co-culture. Biofilm composition was evaluated and inflammatory responses quantified at a transcriptional and protein level.<p></p> Results: CHX was toxic to epithelial cells and multi-species biofilms at concentrations ranging from 0.01-0.2%. RSV did not effect multi-species biofilm composition, but was toxic to epithelial cells at concentrations greater than 0.01%. In co-culture, CHX-treated biofilms resulted in down regulation of the inflammatory chemokine IL-8 at both mRNA and protein level. RSV-treated epithelial cells in co-culture were down-regulated in the release of IL-8 protein, but not mRNA.<p></p> Conclusions: CHX possesses potent bactericidal properties, which may impact downstream inflammatory mediators. RSV does not appear to have bactericidal properties against multi-species biofilms, however it did appear to supress epithelial cells from releasing inflammatory mediators. This study demonstrates the potential to understand the mechanisms by which different oral hygiene products may influence gingival inflammation, thereby validating the use of a biofilm co-culture model.<p></p&gt