Studies in heterocyclic chemistry

Imperial Users onl

The dynamics of labour relations at the port of Liverpool, 1967-1989

In the second half of the twentieth century, significant advances in pay, working conditions and labour organisation were achieved by dock workers who had historically comprised one of the most exploited, least powerful sectors of the British working-class. State-sponsored regulation of the industry ushered in a complete change in the system of employment, the dynamics of workplace bargaining and irrevocably altered the relationship between port workers and their employers. However, despite considerable research into different aspects of labour organisation, state regulation and the system of employment on the docks, very few studies have explored labour relations at a specific port in order to focus on local variation and the nature of local workplace relationships. This thesis has sought to redress this imbalance in the existing historiography by undertaking a detailed exploration of labour relations at the port of Liverpool between 1967 and 1989. The research offers an empirical analysis and interpretation of events and disputes at the port of Liverpool during this period. This time-frame is chosen because 1967 heralded state-sponsored total decasualisation of the industry, introducing an official shop steward movement and signifying a watershed for labour relations and the modernisation of Britain’s ports. 1989 witnessed the end of an era for the dock industry and those employed within. The abolition of the National Dock Labour Scheme after a decade of Conservative government ended the unique statutory protection dockers had enjoyed for many years. This thesis concludes that labour relations on the Liverpool waterfront between 1967 and 1989 were considerably more complex than previous industry-wide studies have suggested. While certain factors are inherent to the national dock industry, there is considerable variation in the organisational character and experiences of dock workers in different ports. Liverpool developed its own brand of labour relations that was historically shaped. Local idiosyncrasies are central to a proper evaluation of labour relations and workplace relationships at the port. After 1972, the growth of clerical organisation further complicated already-nuanced workplace relationships by introducing another participant to industrial bargaining. Locality is central to understanding the intricate and composite nature of modern industrial relations at Liverpool in the decades between 1967 and 1989

If Nobody Hears Us, Do We Really Make a Sound? Investigating Agriculture Faculty Members’ Engagement in Science Communication

Science communication is a crucial factor for ensuring scientific work in food and agriculture reaches intended end-users. Unfortunately, research faculty may not be willing or able to engage in science communication activities. This study was organized using the Faculty Engagement Framework to evaluate the personal, professional, and institutional factors that influence University of Tennessee faculty members’ engagement in public-facing science communication. Results indicated faculty members in this study were overall not highly engaged in science communication activities. Factors that significantly predicted their degree of engagement included knowledge of and attitudes toward communicating their science to public audiences. While the results of this study provide valuable insight for future training design and support measures to enhance faculty members’ engagement, further research with a larger sample size at multiple institutes is needed to better evaluate the relationship between the variables proposed in the model of the current study

Emergency Portasystemic Shunting in Cirrhotics With Bleeding Varices — A Comparison of Portacaval and Mesocaval Shunts

Despite the best conservative measures available for the control of major variceal hemorrhage, some patients either continue to bleed, or rebleed early, and require emergency surgery. One hundred patients with cirrhosis and uncontrolled bleeding were treated with emergency portasystemic shunts between 1968 and 1983. Fifty eight patients had end-to-side portacaval shunts and 42 had Dacron interposition mesocaval shunts. Both groups were comparable with respect to age, sex and prevalence of alcoholism. There was an increased severity of liver disease as assessed by Child's class in the mesocaval group of patients

How does priority setting for resource allocation happen in commissioning dental services in a nationally led, regionally delivered system: a qualitative study using semistructured interviews with NHS England dental commissioners

Objectives: To understand approaches to priority setting for healthcare service resource allocation at an operational level in a nationally commissioned but regionally delivered service. Design: Qualitative study using semistructured interviews and a Framework analysis. Setting: National Health Service dentistry commissioning teams within subregional offices in England. Participants: All 31 individuals holding the relevant role (dental lead commissioner in subregional offices) were approached directly and from this 14 participants were recruited, with 12 interviews completed. Both male and female genders and all regions were represented in the final sample. Results: Three major themes arose. First, 'Methods of priority setting and barriers to explicit approaches' was a common theme, specifically identifying the main methods as: perpetuating historical allocations, pressure from politicians and clinicians and use of needs assessments while barriers were time and skill deficits, a lack of national guidance and an inflexible contracting arrangements stopping resource allocation. Second, 'Relationships with key stakeholders and advisors' were discussed, showing the important nature of relationships with clinical advisors but variation in the quality of these relationships was noted. Finally, 'Tensions between national and local responsibilities' were illustrated, where there was confusion about where power and autonomy lay. Conclusions: Commissioners recognised a need for resource allocation but relied on clinical advice and needs assessment in order to set priorities. More explicit priority setting was prevented by structure of the commissioning system and standard national contracts with providers. Further research is required to embed and simplify adoption of tools to aid priority setting

Is Population Density Associated with Non-Communicable Disease in Western Developed Countries? A Systematic Review

Over the last three decades, researchers have investigated population density and health outcomes at differing scale. There has not been a systematic review conducted in order to synthesise this evidence. Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews (PRISMA) guidelines, we systematically reviewed quantitative evidence published since 1990 on population density and non-communicable disease (NCD) within Westernised countries. Fifty-four studies met the inclusion criteria and were evaluated utilising a quality assessment tool for ecological studies. High population density appears to be associated with higher mortality rates of a range of cancers, cardiovascular disease and COPD, and a higher incidence of a range of cancers, asthma and club foot. In contrast, diabetes incidence was found to be associated with low population density. High and low population density are therefore risk markers for a range of NCDs, indicating that there are unidentified factors and mechanisms underlying aetiology. On closer examination, our synthesis revealed important and complex relationships between population density, the built environment, the nature of greenspace and man-made exposures. In light of increasing rates of morbidity and mortality, future research is required to investigate these associations in order to establish causative agents for each NCD

Faunal response to benthic and hyporheic sedimentation varies with direction of vertical hydrological exchange

1. Sedimentation and clogging of benthic and hyporheic zone substrates is increasingly being recognised as one of the greatest threats to the ecological integrity of riverine ecosystems globally. This ex-situ study examined the influence of sedimentation (benthic and hyporheic) and pattern of hydrological exchange on the vertical distribution of the freshwater shrimp Gammarus pulex within the experimental substrates of running water mesocosms. 2. Six sediment treatments representing a continuum from a clean gravel substratum through to heavy sediment loading of both benthic and hyporheic substrates were used to examine the distribution of G. pulex in relation to the direction of hydrological exchange (downwelling, upwelling and no exchange). 3. The vertical distribution of fauna varied significantly for both sediment treatment and pattern of hydrological exchange. There was a significant interaction between the two effects indicating that the effect of sedimentation varied depending on the pattern of vertical hydrological exchange

'This is not America': Cultural mythscapes, media representation and the anatomy of the Surveillance School in Australia

Schools have exhibited a demonstrable predilection for surveillance technologies in recent years. While much attention has been paid to the globalized diffusion of surveillance and security practices, in contrast, the ways in which artefacts of surveillance surface and take root unevenly internationally has not received much scholarly attention. Drawing on the media representation of emergent school surveillance technologies in Australia, this article seeks to illuminate how distinctive cultural dynamics interact with acceptability, reverence and rejection of surveillance apparatus in the educational context. Far from revealing homogeneity in the manifestation of surveillance practices, the findings show that cultural context and specificity are central to understanding the materiality of surveillance apparatus and regimes

Objects in contact with classical scrapie sheep act as a reservoir for scrapie transmission

Classical scrapie is an environmentally transmissible prion disease of sheep and goats. Prions can persist and remain potentially infectious in the environment for many years and thus pose a risk of infecting animals after re-stocking. In vitro studies using serial protein misfolding cyclic amplification (sPMCA) have suggested that objects on a scrapie- affected sheep farm could contribute to disease transmission. This in vivo study aimed to determine the role of field furniture (water troughs, feeding troughs, fencing, and other objects that sheep may rub against) used by a scrapie-infected sheep flock as a vector for disease transmission to scrapie-free lambs with the prion protein genotype VRQ/VRQ, which is associated with high susceptibility to classical scrapie. When the field furniture was placed in clean accommodation, sheep became infected when exposed to either a water trough (four out of five) or to objects used for rubbing (four out of seven). This field furniture had been used by the scrapie-infected flock 8 weeks earlier and had previously been shown to harbor scrapie prions by sPMCA. Sheep also became infected (20 out of 23) through exposure to contaminated field furniture placed within pasture not used by scrapie-infected sheep for 40 months, even though swabs from this furniture tested negative by PMCA. This infection rate decreased (1 out of 12) on the same paddock after replacement with clean field furniture. Twelve grazing sheep exposed to field furniture not in contact with scrapie-infected sheep for 18 months remained scrapie free. The findings of this study highlight the role of field furniture used by scrapie-infected sheep to act as a reservoir for disease re-introduction although infectivity declines considerably if the field furniture has not been in contact with scrapie-infected sheep for several months. PMCA may not be as sensitive as VRQ/VRQ sheep to test for environmental contamination