Research for regions: Strengthening marine technology transfer for Pacific Island Countries and biodiversity beyond national jurisdiction

Pacific Island Countries have limited capacity to engage in scientific research involving marine genetic resources in areas beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJ). Marine scientific research and capacity development are central to the regime for technology transfer established by the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (LOSC), but gaps and ambiguities weaken this framework. In this article, options to strengthen scientific capacity in Pacific Island Countries, through the development of a new international legally binding instrument for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity in ABNJ under the LOSC, are examined. The international framework for technology transfer could be strengthened by fostering an integrated approach to the advancement, sharing and application of scientific knowledge. Coordination and collaboration at global and regional levels will be required to increase marine science cooperation, improve access to data and information, deliver training, and overcome barriers to develop institutional and individual scientific capacity

Safeguarding children across services: messages from research

The book begins by defining the different forms of abuse and their effects, and examining the effectiveness of universal preventative measures such as education programmes

Characteristics and costs of individuals experiencing severe hypoglycaemia requiring emergency ambulance assistance in the community

Background and aims: Hypoglycaemia causes considerable a burden to individuals the healthcare providers. The aim of this study was to examine clinical characteristics of individuals requiring emergency medical assistance by ambulance services for an episode of severe hypoglycaemia and to estimate provider costs of hypoglycaemia. Materials and methods: Routinely collected information was retrieved for all episodes of severe hypoglycaemia attended to by the emergency ambulance services for a population of 367,051 people, including 75,603 people with diabetes, in Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire, UK, between 01/11/10 to 28/02/11. A total of 90,435 emergency calls were received in the study period, of which 523 (0.6%) were recorded as severe hypoglycaemia. The time to response, on-site treatment and hospitalisation were recorded along with standard clinical and blood glucose (BG) measures. Ambulance services costs were calculated. Results: The mean (SD) [proportion <= 3.2 mmol/L] pre and post-treatment BG levels were 1.9 (0.9) mmol/L [92%] and 6.5 (3.1) mmol/L [3%] respectively, 74% were under insulin treatment, 28% had nocturnal hypoglycaemia, and 153 (32%) individuals were transported to hospital. Lower pre-treatment BG (p<0.01) and Glasgow Coma Scale scores (p=0.05) were observed in insulin treated individuals in comparison to non-insulin treated individuals. No significant differences in individual characteristics were observed for other clinical measurements: post-treatment blood glucose (p=0.39), systolic blood pressure (p=0.28), diastolic blood pressure (p=0.64) and heart rate (p=0.93). Non insulin treatment was an independent predictor of transportation to hospital (p<0.01). Median time from allocation of call to departure of scene by ambulance services was 39 and 59 minutes for those transported and not transported to hospital respectively, translating to costs of £92 and £139 respectively. The median time from allocation to handing over patients to emergency staff was 75 minutes, equating to a cost of £176. Conclusion: The majority of cases of severe hypoglycaemia are successfully treated at the scene by the emergency ambulance services. Insulin treated and non insulin treated individuals do not differ by clinical characteristics, however non insulin treated individuals were more likely to be transported to hospital. Further studies are needed into the effect of prehospital ambulance care by treatment type on subsequent outcomes

A comparison of survivourship and function (grazing and behaviour) of three gastropod species used as clean-up crew for the marine aquarium trade

Several million gastropods are collected each year for the marine ornamental trade to graze on algae detrimental to aquarium species, however, little is known about popular species' suitability to perform this clean-up crew role. Three commonly traded gastropods, Turbo bruneus, Tectus fenestratus, and Tegula eiseni were assessed on their performance. Their survival was quantified as was their movement, and positioning with respect to water level and growth rates were calculated from the start and end weights. Nitrocellulose-coated slides were impregnated with an algal extract and the amount of grazing by each species was also compared. After 53 days final mortality levels of species were significantly different with all T. bruneus individuals surviving, whilst all T. fenestratus individuals apart from two and 35% of the T. eiseni had died by the end of the experiment. T. bruneus grazed significantly more than individuals of T. eiseni, and T. fenestratus. Both T. bruneus and T. eiseni were heavier after one month with T. bruneus gaining significantly more weight than T. eiseni. Greater percentages of algae were grazed by T. bruneus of increasing weight, although this relationship was not found for T. eiseni and T. fenestratus. All three species were generally active and remained within the water for the vast majority of time, although a small, but significant amount of time was spent out of the water for T. eiseni. T. fenestratus were significantly less active than T. bruneus, although the mean activity of T. eiseni was not significantly different from either species. T. bruneus out performs the other two species as a cleaning organism especially in the context of fluctuating water quality, thus highlighting the varying suitability of organisms for this task. Preference in the ornamental trade should be given to T. bruneus over the other topshells, but accurate species identification is critical

New laws for the high seas: four key issues the UN talks need to tackle

United Nations negotiations begin today in New York on the elements of an international agreement to govern the conservation and sustainable use of the high seas

A systematic review of body image dissatisfaction in young athletes and non-athletes, and an empirical study of the link between disgust and body image in an analogue sample

Body image dissatisfaction (BID) commonly develops in adolescence. Young athletes may be at a greater risk of developing BID than their non-athlete peers as a result of the unique pressures of sporting contexts. This paper presents a systematic review of the recent literature comparing athlete and non-athlete children and adolescents on a measure of BID, to explore the current status of BID in young male and female athletes. Literature searches were conducted across five electronic databases. Eleven studies were narratively synthesised, and quality assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Quality Assessment Scale (NOQA). Most studies were assessed to be of ‘fair’ or ‘poor’ quality, with two studies deemed to be of ‘good’ methodological quality. Results indicated that engaging in structured and competitive sports may provide some buffer from BID, and that females experience greater BID than their male peers regardless of athletic status. However, no clear pattern relating to the impact of age, sport type or competition on this buffer could be established. Further robust research within this field is warranted. Implications of the findings for BID in children and adolescents are discussed, along with future directions for researc

Sarcasm and emoticons: comprehension and emotional impact

Most theorists agree that sarcasm serves some communicative function that would not be achieved by speaking directly, such as eliciting a particular emotional response in the recipient. One debate concerns whether this kind of language serves to enhance or mute the positive or negative nature of a message. The role of textual devices commonly used to accompany written sarcastic remarks is also unclear. The current research uses a rating task to investigate the influence of textual devices (emoticons and punctuation marks) on the comprehension of, and emotional responses to, sarcastic versus literal criticism and praise, for both unambiguous (Experiment 1) and ambiguous (Experiment 2) materials. Results showed that sarcastic criticism was rated as less negative than literal criticism, and sarcastic praise was rated as less positive than literal praise, suggesting that sarcasm serves to mute the positive or negative nature of the message. In terms of textual devices, results showed that emoticons had a larger influence on both comprehension and emotional impact than punctuation marks