Body Language: Reading the Corpse in Forensic Crime Fiction .

Our purpose in this article is to explore the fascination, over the last decade, with crime narratives that centre on the figure of the forensic pathologist. Principally this involves a reading of Cornwell�s Scarpetta series, but we also discuss a growing number of other novels that confront readers with the �reality� of the dead body. In some cases (for example, Kathy Reichs and Priscilla Masters) writers use, as Cornwell does, the figure of the forensic pathologist; in other instances, such as Nicci French�s The Red Room (2001) and Jan Burke�s Bones (1999), the female protagonist�s reading of the crime is determined by alternative forms of first-hand access to the �underworld� of the grave or autopsy room, such as that of the crime journalist or criminal psychologist. In contrast to the kind of police procedural novel that gives centre-stage to the psyche of the serial killer, the forensic pathology novel aims instead to evoke the �appalling human messiness� of actual crime through a perspective nearer to that of the victim. By providing readers with not only a body of experts but an expert on the body the novelist allows them to listen to the voices of the dead

Mères fatales:maternal guilt in the noir crime novel

We argue in this article that the coupling of "noir" conventions with an interest in maternal subjectivity has characterised the work of a number of female crime writers. Recent theories of maternal subjectivities (developed, for example, in the work of Jessica Benjamin, Elaine Tuttle Hansen, Marianne Hirsch, Brenda O. Daly and Maureen T. Reddy) have departed from the mother-blaming psychoanalytic emphasis of many earlier feminist critics, arguing instead the importance of recuperating the mother's perspective and voice, of disrupting "narratives that silence mothers" and allowing the maternal figure to be humanised. We compare male and female representations of "the guilt of the mother" in a range of crime fiction published from the 1940s to the present, and to analyse some of the ways in which an increasing interest in reclaiming the subjectivity of the mother has been reflected in noir crime novels written by women

Estimation of the large order behavior of the plaquette

The universality of vacuum condensate can be exploited to relate the infrared renormalon caused large order behaviors of different processes. As an application the normalization constant of the large order behavior of the average plaquette is estimated using the Adler function.Comment: 7 pages. version published in Phys. Lett.

Excited nucleon spectrum using a non-perturbatively improved clover fermion action

We discuss the extraction of negative-parity baryon masses from lattice QCD calculations. The mass of the lowest-lying negative-parity $J = 1/2^{-}$ state is computed in quenched lattice QCD using an ${\cal O}(a)$-improved clover fermion action, and a splitting found with the nucleon mass. The calculation is performed on two lattice volumes, and three lattice spacings enabling a study of both finite-volume and finite-lattice-spacing uncertainties. A measurement of the first excited radial excitation of the nucleon finds a mass considerably larger than that of the negative-parity ground state, in accord with other lattice determinations but in disagreement with experiment. Results are also presented for the lightest negative-parity $I=3/2$ state.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures, uses espcrc2. Talk presented at Workshop on Lattice Hadron Physics, Colonial Club Resort, Cairns, Australia, July 9-18, 2001. Corrected error in determination of mass of excited, positive-parity nucleon resonanc

A prospective observational study of urinary cytokines and inflammatory response in patients with Overactive Bladder Syndrome

Background Contemporary studies have discredited the methods used to exclude urinary tract infection (UTI) when treating overactive bladder (OAB). Thus we must revisit the OAB phenotype to check that UTI has not been overlooked. Aims To examine the differences in urinary cytokines IL6 and lactoferrin in OAB patients compared to controls, with references to microscopy of urine and enhanced quantitative urine culture. Methods A blinded, prospective cohort study with normal controls using six repeated measures, achieved two-monthly, over 12 months. Results The differences between patients and controls in urine IL6 (F = 49.0, p < .001) and lactoferrin (F = 228.5, p < .001) were significant and of a magnitude to have clinical implications. These differences were for lactoferrin correlated to symptoms (9.3, p = .003); for both to pyuria (IL6 F = 66.2, p < .001, Lactoferrin F = 73.9, p < .001); and for IL6 microbial abundance (F = 5.1, p = .024). The pathological markers had been missed by urinary dipsticks and routine MSU culture. Conclusion The OAB phenotype may encompass patients with UTI that is being overlooked because of the failure of standard screening methods

Determinants of uptake of hepatitis B testing and healthcare access by migrant Chinese in the England: a qualitative study

BACKGROUND: Global migration from hepatitis B endemic countries poses a significant public health challenge in receiving low-prevalence countries. In the UK, Chinese migrants are a high risk group for hepatitis B. However, they are an underserved population that infrequently accesses healthcare. This study sought to increase understanding of the determinants of hepatitis B testing and healthcare access among migrants of Chinese ethnicity living in England. METHODS: We sought to obtain and integrate insights from different key stakeholders in the system. We conducted six focus group discussions and 20 in-depth interviews with community members and patients identifying themselves as 'Chinese', and interviewed 21 clinicians and nine health service commissioners. Data were thematically analysed and findings were corroborated through two validation workshops. RESULTS: Three thematic categories emerged: knowledge and awareness, visibility of the disease, and health service issues. Low disease knowledge and awareness levels among community members contributed to erroneous personal risk perception and suboptimal engagement with services. Limited clinician knowledge led to missed opportunities to test and inaccurate assessments of infection risks in Chinese patients. There was little social discourse and considerable stigma linked to the disease among some sub-sections of the Chinese population. A lack of visibility of the issue and the population within the health system meant that these health needs were not prioritised by clinicians or commissioners. Service accessibility was also affected by the lack of language support. Greater use of community outreach, consultation aids, 'cultural competency' training, and locally adapted testing protocols may help. CONCLUSIONS: Hepatitis B among migrants of Chinese ethnicity in England can be characterised as an invisible disease in an invisible population. Multi-modal solutions are needed to tackle barriers within this population and the health system

Value of urban green spaces in promoting healthy living and wellbeing: prospects for planning.

There has been considerable work done in recent years exploring the value of urban green space for health and wellbeing. Urban green spaces provide environmental benefits through their effects on negating urban heat, offsetting greenhouse gas emissions, and attenuating storm water. They also have direct health benefits by providing urban residents spaces for physical activity and social interaction, and allowing psychological restoration to take place. Consequently, there is a real need to understand the mechanisms by which these benefits accrue. Previously, much of the focus has been on the characteristics of the urban green space that are likely to influence its use, such as its accessibility, quality, facilities, attractiveness, and security. This assumes a causal relationship, when in reality the relationship is more complex and multifactorial. It is more likely that it is the functionality of the green space, be it for exercise or sociocultural activities, rather than its character, which translates to the reported benefits. Challenges exist, such as competing urban planning priorities, economic considerations, and market forces. There is thus a need for urban planning to match the health benefits sought with the needs of the community and the functionality that the urban green space will serve

Negative-parity Baryon Masses using an O(a)-improved Fermion Action

We present a calculation of the mass of the lowest-lying negative-parity J=1/2- state in quenched QCD. Results are obtained using a non-perturbatively O(a)-improved clover fermion action, and a splitting is found between the mass of the nucleon and its parity partner. The calculation is performed on two lattice volumes and at three lattice spacings, enabling a study of both finite-volume and finite lattice-spacing uncertainties. A comparison is made with results obtained using the unimproved Wilson fermion action.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figures, revtex Version accepted for publication in Physics Letters B. Some changes to discussion of chiral extrapolations; primary results unchange

Fabrication of a Large, Ordered, Three-Dimensional Nanocup Array

Metallic nanocups provide a unique method for redirecting scattered light by creating magnetic plasmon responses at optical frequencies. Despite considerable development of nanocup fabrication processes, simultaneously achieving accurate control over the placement, orientation, and geometry of nanocups has remained a significant challenge. Here we present a technique for fabricating large, periodically ordered arrays of uniformly oriented three-dimensional gold nanocups for manipulating light at subwavelength scales. Nanoimprint lithography, soft lithography, and shadow evaporation were used to fabricate nanocups onto the tips of polydimethylsiloxane nanopillars with precise control over the shapes and optical properties of asymmetric nanocups

Novel antibiotic-loaded particles conferring eradication of deep tissue bacterial reservoirs for the treatment of chronic urinary tract infection

A significant proportion of urinary tract infection (UTI) patients experience recurrent episodes, due to deep tissue infection and treatment-resistant bacterial reservoirs. Direct bladder instillation of antibiotics has proved disappointing in treating UTI, likely due to the failure of infused antibiotics to penetrate the bladder epithelium and accumulate to high enough levels to kill intracellular bacteria. This work investigates the use of nitrofurantoin loaded poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) particles to improve delivery to intracellular targets for the treatment of chronic UTI. Using electrohydrodynamic atomisation, we produced particles with an average diameter of 2.8 μm. In broth culture experiments, the biodegradable particles were effective against a number of UTI-relevant bacterial strains. Dye-loaded particles demonstrated that intracellular delivery was achieved in all cells in 2D cultures of a human bladder epithelial progenitor cell line in a dose-dependent manner, achieving far higher efficiency and concentration than equivalent quantities of free drug. Time-lapse video microscopy confirmed that delivery occurred within 30 min of administration, to 100% of cells. Moreover, the particles were able to deliver the drug to cells through multiple layers of a 3D human bladder organoid model causing minimal cell toxicity, displaying superior killing of bacterial reservoirs harboured within bladder cells compared with unencapsulated drug. The particles were also able to kill bacterial biofilms more effectively than the free drug. These results illustrate the potential for using antibiotic-loaded microparticles to effectively treat chronic UTIs. Such a delivery method could be extrapolated to other clinical indications where robust intracellular delivery is required, such as oncology and gene therapy