DRAFT 04

A collection of ideas, processes and projects Interior Architecture & Design Middlesex University Editors David Fern Francesca Muriald

Draft one, process

foreword of the Issue 1 of the DRAFT Magazin

Preliminary Report: Feeding Flax Straw to Cattle

Introduction: This circular gives the results of feeding flax straw to cattle. Reports show that flax was introduced into New England and Virginia, in the early colonial days, and grown chiefly for its fiber. Later its cultivation as a seed crop spread westward with the settlement of new lands. South Dakota ranks third among the states in the production of flax. In the statistical report, issued by the South Dakota Department of Agriculture, for 1930, we find that every county in the state is credited with growing flax. The largest acreage is reported from Perkins County in the West River country and the smallest from Union county in the Southeastern part of the state, which county is one of the smallest in the state. Of the 711,442 acres, 40,862 were grown west of the Missouri River. In this connection it might be well to state that according to the last census of the United States Department of Commerce, over one-third of the cattle population of the state is credited to the West River country. The by-product of the industry, the straw, is still used for manufacturing purposes, but the chances are that more flax straw produced on the farms in South Dakota is used for feeding livestock than for manufacturing purposes. (See more in text

The costs of accessible quality assured syphilis diagnostics: informing quality systems for rapid syphilis tests in a Tanzanian setting.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the costs of Rapid Syphilis Test (RSTs) as compared with rapid plasma reagin (RPR) when implemented in a Tanzanian setting, and to determine the relative impact of a quality assurance (QA) system on the cost of RST implementation. METHODS: The incremental costs for RPR and RST screening programmes in existing antenatal care settings in Geita District, Tanzania were collected for 9 months in subsequent years from nine health facilities that varied in size, remoteness and scope of antenatal services. The costs per woman tested and treated were estimated for each facility. A sensitivity analysis was constructed to determine the impact of parameter and model uncertainty. FINDINGS: In surveyed facilities, a total of 6362 women were tested with RSTs compared with 224 tested with RPR. The range of unit costs was $1.76-$3.13 per woman screened and $12.88-$32.67 per woman treated. Unit costs for the QA system came to $0.51 per woman tested, of which 50% were attributed to salaries and transport for project personnel. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that rapid syphilis diagnostics are very inexpensive in this setting and can overcome some critical barriers to ensuring universal access to syphilis testing and treatment. The additional costs for implementation of a quality system were found to be relatively small, and could be reduced through alterations to the programme design. Given the potential for a quality system to improve quality of diagnosis and care, we recommend that QA activities be incorporated into RST roll-out

Phase and group velocity tracing analysis of projected wave packet motion along oblique radar beams ? qualitative analysis of QP echoes

International audienceThe wave packets of atmospheric gravity waves were numerically generated, with a given characteristic wave period, horizontal wave length and projection mean wind along the horizontal wave vector. Their projection phase and group velocities along the oblique radar beam (vpr and vgr), with different zenith angle ? and azimuth angle ?, were analyzed by the method of phase- and group-velocity tracing. The results were consistent with the theoretical calculations derived by the dispersion relation, reconfirming the accuracy of the method of analysis. The RTI plot of the numerical wave packets were similar to the striation patterns of the QP echoes from the FAI irregularity region. We propose that the striation range rate of the QP echo is equal to the radial phase velocity vpr, and the slope of the energy line across the neighboring striations is equal to the radial group velocity vgr of the wave packet; the horizontal distance between two neighboring striations is equal to the characteristic wave period ?. Then, one can inversely calculate all the properties of the gravity wave responsible for the appearance of the QP echoes. We found that the possibility of some QP echoes being generated by the gravity waves originated from lower altitudes cannot be ruled out

Magnetothermal properties of molecule-based materials

We critically review recent results obtained by studying the low-temperature specific heat of some of the most popular molecular magnets. Perspectives of this field are discussed as well.Comment: 12 pages text + 14 pages figures, Submitted as "feature article" to Journal of Materials Chemistr

Multi-Professional Perspectives on Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology Across Europe: An e-Delphi Survey

The aims of this article are to describe the ongoing development of adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer services within the European Union (EU), and to develop consensus on key areas within the field. This survey used an e-Delphi design. An initial survey was distributed via email to professionals working in Europe. A snowball sampling technique was used to promote distribution. Consensus was sought over three rounds from October 2012 to April 2015. Consensus was defined as >80% agreement (“agree” or “strongly agree”). Sixty professionals participated in round 1, 106 in round 2, and 61 in round 3. Twenty-six countries were represented across all rounds. Consensus was achieved for: the need for national policy guidance, the importance of patient choice, the validity of the International Charter of Rights for Young People, and some aspects of multi-disciplinary working. There was 75% agreement on a single definition of the patient age range within AYA cancer care. European professionals with expertise in AYA cancer care reached consensus on key elements of care for this group. The optimal AYA age range remained an elusive topic on which to agree. The broad engagement and interest in AYA cancer across the EU through the European Network for Cancer in Children and Adolescents (ENCCA) network was also demonstrated

Functional redundancy of two C. elegans homologs of the histone chaperone Asf1 in germline DNA replication

AbstractEukaryotic genomes contain either one or two genes encoding homologs of the highly conserved histone chaperone Asf1, however, little is known of their in vivo roles in animal development. UNC-85 is one of the two Caenorhabditis elegans Asf1 homologs and functions in post-embryonic replication in neuroblasts. Although UNC-85 is broadly expressed in replicating cells, the specificity of the mutant phenotype suggested possible redundancy with the second C. elegans Asf1 homolog, ASFL-1. The asfl-1 mRNA is expressed in the meiotic region of the germline, and mutants in either Asf1 genes have reduced brood sizes and low penetrance defects in gametogenesis. The asfl-1, unc-85 double mutants are sterile, displaying defects in oogenesis and spermatogenesis, and analysis of DNA synthesis revealed that DNA replication in the germline is blocked. Analysis of somatic phenotypes previously observed in unc-85 mutants revealed that they are neither observed in asfl-1 mutants, nor enhanced in the double mutants, with the exception of enhanced male tail abnormalities in the double mutants. These results suggest that the two Asf1 homologs have partially overlapping functions in the germline, while UNC-85 is primarily responsible for several Asf1 functions in somatic cells, and is more generally involved in replication throughout development