MACSUR - Second Phase Report

In order to overcome the rigorous thematic orientation during the first phase of MACSUR with three groups organized according to academic fields, a new structure was developed for MACSUR2. In cross cutting activities topics were identified that required the interaction and collaboration of researchers from a range of different scientific disciplines. During the second phase of MACSUR new groups of researchers came on board. This made it possible to extend the number of regional case studies. In some larger countries like Italy, Poland und UK more than one group were working on different regions. An overview was presented at the workshop for policymakers in Brussels in May 2016. Deliverables and milestonesExcellent joint research in the particular field to respond to questions in the Strategic Research Agenda:Researchers from University of Leeds, Aberystwyth University and Scotland's Rural College have developed a novel method for a spatially explicit estimation of heat stress-related impact of climate change on the milk production of dairy cows in the United Kingdom.Researchers from University of Leeds, Centre for Agricultural Research of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, International Center for Tropical Agriculture (Colombia) and Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (Germany) have developed a novel method to estimating the land use changes for maize and soybean production by 2100 on a global scale.Increase and facilitate transnational cooperation and coordination between excellent researchers and research organisations, building a progressive and long-lasting network:Collaboration with agricultural, meteorological agencies and Escuela Politécnica Nacional from Ecuador to develop a research line on agricultural impacts and adaptation to climate change, with focus on water resourcesAdaptation in Austrian cattle and milk production (ADAPT-CATMILK). Austrian Climate Research Programme research grant. Partners: WIFO, BOKU, University Cranfield, Thünen InstituteCoordination of Spanish participation in the Joint Programming Initiative "Agriculture, Food Security and Climate Change (FACCE-JPI)". Phase 1 http://www.chil.org/profile/spanish.macsur/main.Technical efficiency and challenges of the agricultural sector in Austria and New Zealand. Research proposal submitted to the Austrian Chamber of Agriculture.Coordination of a joint proposal in the Joint Programming Initiative "Agriculture, Food Security and Climate Change (FACCE-JPI)". Phase 2 http://www.chil.org/profile/spanish.macsur/main (Partners participating: MTT Agrifood Finland, University of Bonn, INRA France, Polytechnical University of Madrid )Submission of two research projects with partners involved in MACSUR and private partners to the call FACCE/ERANET+ Climate Smart AgricultureJPI FACCE - SURPLUS. Coordination of a joint application “Towards sustainably intensified and resilient production systems in European Agriculture. Prospects for integrating dairy and bioenergy production systems (DAIRYENERGY)”, submitted 04.03.2015. MACSUR partners from Norway, Belgium, Italy."H2020 Call: H2020-SFS-2016-2017; (Sustainable Food Security – Resilient and resource-efficient value chains) Topic: SFS-02-2016. Stage II. DIVERSify: Designing InnoVative plant teams for Ecosystem Resilience and agricultural Sustainability"Links created to other EU groups: with the collaboration started with Edwin Haas (Germany) and Stefan Olin (Sweden). There is an Australian link created with Matthew Harrison. In Europe there is also an active contact in Germany (for the Monica model) and in Poland (for Stics).Develop research capacity in the particular field, to join learning/training activities (e.g. mobility) and to share infrastructures.Over the reporting period nearly 40 visiting scientists were hosted in MACSUR labs for joint research/ learning/training activities. In total, 31 PhD theses were awarded over the reporting period.AgMIP, Memorandum of Understanding signed 2014-02-19Global Research Alliance's Animal Health and Greenhouse Gas Emissions Intensity Network and MACSUR's Task on Animal Health and Greenhouse Gas Emissions organising a joint workshop for MACSUR 2H2020 SFS42-2016. PEANUTSSA Stage-1-proposal submitted February 2016. MACSUR partners Thünen Institute, ILVO, SRUC, James Hutton Institute and non-MACSUR members.FACCE ERAGAS 'CEDERS' (2017-2020

Rotational precision MEMS-based clamping mechanism for stable fixation of elastic mechanisms

Conventional TEM sample manipulators often lack the crucial stability of 0.1 nm/min. A MEMS manipulator attached directly to the TEM pole would greatly increase both thermal and dynamic stability. However a stable E-beam requires no interference of electric or magnetic fields. Therefore the manipulator should be stably fixed without power. To this end a mechanical clamp is presented which clamps one of the actuators of the TEM sample manipulator (Figure 2). The clamp incorporates a relatively large clamp force of 0.5 mN with respect to the device area and is able to maintain the clamp force without external power. In previous work [1] a theoretical basis has been presented of an earlier clamp version. In this paper a rotational clamp which has been made and tested is presented. This clamp design is part of a research project for a 6 Degree of Freedom MEMS TEM sample manipulator. \u

Increased risk of work disability among lower income groups because of later retirement

De afgelopen jaren heeft het kabinet langer doorwerken gestimuleerd,maar mogelijk zijn niet alle oudere werknemers daartoein staat. Hebben de afschaffing van het vroegpensioen en hetverhogen van de AOW-leeftijd de kans op arbeidsongeschiktheiddoen toenemen?In het kort:-Door de afschaffing van het vroegpensioen en de verhoging van de AOW-leeftijd wordt er steeds langer doorgewerkt.-Het aantal WIA-aanvragen van zestigplussers is door de vroegpensioenafschaffing en de hogere AOW-leeftijd verdubbeld.-Het verhogen van de AOW-leeftijd leidt tot verschillende ­effecten tussen bedrijfstakken

Analytical method for perturbed frozen orbit around an Asteroid in highly inhomogeneous gravitational fields : A first approach

This article provides a method for nding initial conditions for perturbed frozen orbits around inhomogeneous fast rotating asteroids. These orbits can be used as reference trajectories in missions that require close inspection of any rigid body. The generalized perturbative procedure followed exploits the analytical methods of relegation of the argument of node and Delaunay normalisation to arbitrary order. These analytical methods are extremely powerful but highly computational. The gravitational potential of the heterogeneous body is rstly stated, in polar-nodal coordinates, which takes into account the coecients of the spherical harmonics up to an arbitrary order. Through the relegation of the argument of node and the Delaunay normalization, a series of canonical transformations of coordinates is found, which reduces the Hamiltonian describing the system to a integrable, two degrees of freedom Hamiltonian plus a truncated reminder of higher order. Setting eccentricity, argument of pericenter and inclination of the orbit of the truncated system to be constant, initial conditions are found, which evolve into frozen orbits for the truncated system. Using the same initial conditions yields perturbed frozen orbits for the full system, whose perturbation decreases with the consideration of arbitrary homologic equations in the relegation and normalization procedures. Such procedure can be automated for the first homologic equation up to the consideration of any arbitrary number of spherical harmonics coefficients. The project has been developed in collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA)

Quantum Graphs: A simple model for Chaotic Scattering

We connect quantum graphs with infinite leads, and turn them to scattering systems. We show that they display all the features which characterize quantum scattering systems with an underlying classical chaotic dynamics: typical poles, delay time and conductance distributions, Ericson fluctuations, and when considered statistically, the ensemble of scattering matrices reproduce quite well the predictions of appropriately defined Random Matrix ensembles. The underlying classical dynamics can be defined, and it provides important parameters which are needed for the quantum theory. In particular, we derive exact expressions for the scattering matrix, and an exact trace formula for the density of resonances, in terms of classical orbits, analogous to the semiclassical theory of chaotic scattering. We use this in order to investigate the origin of the connection between Random Matrix Theory and the underlying classical chaotic dynamics. Being an exact theory, and due to its relative simplicity, it offers new insights into this problem which is at the fore-front of the research in chaotic scattering and related fields.Comment: 28 pages, 13 figures, submitted to J. Phys. A Special Issue -- Random Matrix Theor

Development and psychometric evaluation of the Decision Tool Anxiety Disorders, OCD and PTSD (DTAOP):Facilitating the early detection of patients in need of highly specialized care

Background: Early identification of patients with an anxiety disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in need of highly specialized care could facilitate the selection of the optimal initial treatment in these patients. This paper describes the development and psychometric evaluation of the Decision Tool Anxiety Disorders, OCD and PTSD (DTAOP), which aims to aid clinicians in the early identification of patients with an anxiety disorder, OCD, or PTSD in need of highly specialized mental healthcare. Methods: A systematic literature review and a concept mapping procedure were carried out to inform the development of the DTAOP. To evaluate the psychometric properties of the DTAOP, a cross-sectional study in 454 patients with a DSM-IV-TR anxiety disorder was carried out. Feasibility was evaluated by the completion time and the content clarity of the DTAOP. Inter-rater reliability was assessed in a subsample of 87 patients. Spearman’s rank correlation coefficients between the DTAOP and EuroQol five-dimensional questionnaire (EQ-5D-5L) scores were computed to examine the convergent validity. Criterion validity was assessed against independent clinical judgments made by clinicians. Results: The average time required to complete the eight-item DTAOP was 4.6 min and the total DTAOP was evaluated as clear in the majority (93%) of the evaluations. Krippendorff’s alpha estimates ranged from 0.427 to 0.839. Based on the qualitative feedback, item wording and instructions were improved. As hypothesized, the DTAOP correlated negatively with EQ-5D-5L scores. The area under the curve was 0.826 and the cut-off score of >= 4 optimized sensitivity (70%) and specificity (71%). Conclusions: The DTAOP demonstrated excellent feasibility and good validity, but weak inter-rater reliability. Based on the qualitative feedback and reliability estimates, revisions and refinements of the wording and instructions were made, resulting in the final version of the DTAOP

The Cost-Effectiveness of Early Access to HIV Services and Starting cART in the UK 1996–2008

To calculate use, cost and cost-effectiveness of people living with HIV (PLHIV) starting routine treatment and care before starting combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) and PLHIV starting first-line 2NRTIs+NNRTI or 2NRTIs+PI(boosted), comparing PLHIV with CD4≤200 cells/mm3 and CD4>200 cells/mm3. Few studies have calculated the use, cost and cost-effectiveness of routine treatment and care before starting cART and starting cART above and below CD4 200 cells/mm3.Use, costs and cost-effectiveness were calculated for PLHIV in routine pre-cART and starting first-line cART, comparing CD4≤200 cells/mm3 with CD4>200 cells/mm3 (2008 UK prices).cART naïve patients CD4≤200 cells/mm3 had an annual cost of £6,407 (95%CI £6,382 to £6,425) PPY compared with £2,758 (95%CI £2,752 to £2,761) PPY for those with CD4>200 cells/mm3; cost per life year gained of pre-cART treatment and care for those with CD4>200 cells/mm3 was £1,776 (cost-saving to £2,752). Annual cost for starting 2NRTIs+NNRTI or 2NRTIs+PI(boosted) with CD4≤200 cells/mm3 was £12,812 (95%CI £12,685-£12,937) compared with £10,478 (95%CI £10,376-£10,581) for PLHIV with CD4>200 cells/mm3. Cost per additional life-year gained on first-line therapy for those with CD4>200 cells/mm3 was £4639 (£3,967 to £2,960).PLHIV starting to use HIV services before CD4≤200 cells/mm3 is cost-effective and enables them to be monitored so they start cART with a CD4>200 cells/mm3, which results in better outcomes and is cost-effective. However, 25% of PLHIV accessing services continue to present with CD4≤200 cells/mm3. This highlights the need to investigate the cost-effectiveness of testing and early treatment programs for key populations in the UK