Odonata from the BEFTA Project area, Riau Province, Sumatra, Indonesia

The Odonata found during work on the Biodiversity and Ecosystem Function in Tropical Agriculture (BEFTA) Project in Riau Province, Sumatra, Indonesia are reported. Prior to the BEFTA project we are only aware of published records of 37 species of Odonata from Riau Province (these are listed in an appendix). Seventy five species have been recorded during the BEFTA project, including five that have not (Archibasis incisura, Archibasis rebeccae and Pseudagrion williamsoni), or not definitely (Argiocnemis species and Mortonagrion species cf aborense), been recorded in Sumatra before. Macromia dione is recorded for the first time since its description. The number of species now known from Riau Province is 88; 51 of these are reported from the province for the first time here.Sinar Mas Agro Resources and Technology Research Institute (donation) and Isaac Newton Trust, Cambridg

Social Service Availability & Proximity And The Over-Representation Of Minority Children in Child Welfare

The capstone group assessed whether child welfare services were available and proximal in predominantly low income, black areas with high foster care rates in three southern cities. GIS mapping of services contained in a State 211 community services database revealed that there were no treatment services and/or no public transportation and/or lengthy public transportation times in nearly 25% of the identified areas in the three cities combined. The authors suggest that increasing child welfare service availability and proximity could reduce the overrepresentation of black children in foster care by making services available and proximal to black parents. The authors recommend that child welfare administrators perform annual GIS analyses of State 211 community services databases to assess child welfare service availability. The authors offer a number of recommendations for increasing child welfare service availability and proximity in high foster care areas

Simplifying understory complexity in oil palm plantations is associated with a reduction in the density of a cleptoparasitic spider, Argyrodes miniaceus (Araneae: Theridiidae), in host (Araneae: Nephilinae) webs.

Expansion of oil palm agriculture is currently one of the main drivers of habitat modification in Southeast Asia. Habitat modification can have significant effects on biodiversity, ecosystem function, and interactions between species by altering species abundances or the available resources in an ecosystem. Increasing complexity within modified habitats has the potential to maintain biodiversity and preserve species interactions. We investigated trophic interactions between Argyrodes miniaceus, a cleptoparasitic spider, and its Nephila spp. spider hosts in mature oil palm plantations in Sumatra, Indonesia. A. miniaceus co-occupy the webs of Nephila spp. females and survive by stealing prey items caught in the web. We examined the effects of experimentally manipulated understory vegetation complexity on the density and abundance of A. miniaceus in Nephila spp. webs. Experimental understory treatments included enhanced complexity, standard complexity, and reduced complexity understory vegetation, which had been established as part of the ongoing Biodiversity and Ecosystem Function in Tropical Agriculture (BEFTA) Project. A. miniaceus density ranged from 14.4 to 31.4 spiders per square meter of web, with significantly lower densities found in reduced vegetation complexity treatments compared with both enhanced and standard treatment plots. A. miniaceus abundance per plot was also significantly lower in reduced complexity than in standard and enhanced complexity plots. Synthesis and applications: Maintenance of understory vegetation complexity contributes to the preservation of spider host-cleptoparasite relationships in oil palm plantations. Understory structural complexity in these simplified agroecosystems therefore helps to support abundant spider populations, a functionally important taxon in agricultural landscapes. In addition, management for more structurally complex agricultural habitats can support more complex trophic interactions in tropical agroecosystems

Follow-up care after treatment for prostate cancer:evaluation of a supported self-management and remote surveillance programme

BackgroundAlternative models of cancer follow-up care are needed to ameliorate pressure on services and better meet survivors’ long-term needs. This paper reports an evaluation of a service improvement initiative for the follow-up care of prostate cancer patients based on remote monitoring and supported self-management.MethodsThis multi-centred, historically controlled study compared patient reported outcomes of men experiencing the new Programme with men experiencing a traditional clinic appointment model of follow-up care, who were recruited in the period immediately prior to the introduction of the Programme. Data were collected by self-completed questionnaires, with follow up measurement at four and eight months post-baseline. The primary outcome was men’s unmet survivorship needs, measured by the Cancer Survivors’ Unmet Needs Survey. Secondary outcomes included cancer specific quality of life, psychological wellbeing and satisfaction with care. The analysis was intention to treat. Regression analyses were conducted for outcomes at each time point separately, controlling for pre-defined clinical and demographic variables. All outcome analyses are presented in the paper. Costs were compared between the two groups.ResultsSix hundred and twenty-seven men (61%) were consented to take part in the study (293 in the Programme and 334 in the comparator group.) Regarding the primary measure of unmet survivorship needs, 25 of 26 comparisons favoured the Programme, of which 4 were statistically significant. For the secondary measures of activation for self-management, quality of life, psychological well-being and lifestyle, 20 of 32 comparisons favoured the Programme and 3 were statistically significant. There were 22 items on the satisfaction with care questionnaire and 13 were statistically significant. Per participant costs (British pounds, 2015) in the 8 month follow up period were slightly lower in the programme than in the comparator group (£289 versus £327). The Programme was acceptable to patients.ConclusionThe Programme is shown to be broadly comparable to traditional follow-up care in all respects, adding to evidence of the viability of such models

Follow-up care after treatment for prostate cancer: protocol for an evaluation of a nurse-led supported self-management and remote surveillance programme

Background: As more men survive a diagnosis of prostate cancer, alternative models of follow-up care that address men’s enduring unmet needs and are economical to deliver are needed. This paper describes the protocol for an ongoing evaluation of a nurse-led supported self-management and remote surveillance programme implemented within the secondary care setting. Methods/design: The evaluation is taking place within a real clinical setting, comparing the outcomes of men enrolled in the Programme with the outcomes of a pre-service change cohort of men, using a repeated measures design. Men are followed up at four and eight months post recruitment on a number of outcomes, including quality of life, unmet need, psychological wellbeing and activation for self-management. An embedded health economic analysis and qualitative evaluation of implementation processes are being undertaken. Discussion: The evaluation will provide important information regarding the effectiveness, cost effectiveness and implementation of an integrated supported self-management follow-up care pathway within secondary care.</p

Rimonabant improves cardiometabolic risk factors in overweight/obese patients irrespective of treatment with statins: Pooled data from the RIO program

peer reviewe

Understory vegetation in oil palm plantations benefits soil biodiversity and decomposition rates

Oil palm is the most productive vegetable oil crop per unit area and is crucial to the economy of developing countries such as Malaysia and Indonesia. However, it is also highly controversial due to the impact it has on biodiversity. Inputs of herbicides to control understory vegetation in plantations are high, which is likely to harm native biodiversity, but may be unnecessary in protecting oil palm yield. In this study we investigate the effects of understory manipulation using herbicides on soil fauna, litter decomposition rates and soil abiotic variables: pH, soil organic carbon, soil water content, nitrogen, carbon/nitrogen ratio, potassium and phosphorous. Understory vegetation was manipulated in three treatments: enhanced understory complexity (no herbicides, developed understory), normal understory complexity (intermediate herbicide use with some manual removal) and reduced understory complexity (heavy herbicide use, no understory vegetation). Two years after treatment, soil macrofauna diversity was higher in the enhanced than the normal and reduced understory treatment. Furthermore, both macrofauna abundance and litter decomposition was higher in the enhanced than the reduced understory treatment. By contrast, soil fertility did not change between treatments, perhaps indicating there is little competition between oil palms and understory vegetation. The reduction of herbicide use should be encouraged in oil palm plantations, this will not only reduce plantation costs, but improve soil biodiversity and ecosystem functioning.We are grateful to Pt Ivo Mas Tunggal and Golden Agri Resources for allowing us to conduct research on their oil palm plantations, as well as The Isaac Newton Trust, Cambridge and Sinar Mas Agro Resources and Technology Corporation Research Institute (SMARTRI) for funding the BEFTA Project and providing the resources necessary to conduct all fieldwork. We are grateful to SMARTRI researchers and staff, particular thanks to the SMARTRI soil chemistry laboratory for their advice and support with all aspects of the field data collection and for assistance with sample preparations, and soil nutrient analysis ... AA-B was funded by the National Environmental Research Council (NERC) [grant number NE/L002531/1], ET and JS were supported by the Natural Environment Research Council [grant number NE/P00458X/1]. KP acknowledges support from the Institute for Life Sciences at Southampton University. AH acknowledges support from the Claire Barnes Studentship from the Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge. We thank RISTEK for research permission to set up and collect data from the BEFTA plots (426/SIP/FRP/SM/XI/2012, 72/EXT/SIP/FRP/SM/IX/2013, 44/EXT/SIP/FRP/SM/IX/2014)

Argonia Cup senior capstone competition: Final presentation

The goal of this project was to design and develop a rocket that could get a payload golf ball to at least 8,000 AGL and then return it as close to the X on the ground as possible. In order to achieve this goal, we decided to design an integrated deployable quadcopter UAC that would deploy at apogee and then autonomously fly itself back to the designated target location. This concept has never been achieved before and therefore we wanted to be the first to successfully complete the mission. Despite our work and determination we were unsuccessful of a true recovery however we believe we have made the most progress and had the most success of anyone attempting such a feat at the high-powered rocketry level