The politics of policy resistance: reconstructing higher education in Kosovo

This article considers attempts to incorporate lessons and transfer policies from Britain in the reconstruction of Higher Education in Kosovo after 1999. In doing so, it employs aspects of the lesson-drawing framework developed by Rose (1991 and 2001) and the related concepts of policy transfer and policy diffusion. Drawing on contributions from anthropology and democratization studies, we suggest development of the public policy frameworks for lesson drawing and policy transfer in circumstances characterised by asymmetric interdependence, in which the tactics and strategies of policy resistance by ‘subordinate’ recipient actors can be crucial. This article details the nature of policy resistance and sets out hypotheses for future research

Clinical studies of the high-intensity narrow-spectrum light environmental decontamination system (HINS-light EDS), for continuous disinfection in the burn unit inpatient and outpatient settings

Infections are the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in burn patients and prevention of contamination from exogenous sources including the hospital environment is becoming increasingly emphasised. The High-Intensity Narrow-Spectrum light Environmental Decontamination System (HINS-light EDS) is bactericidal yet safe for humans, allowing continuous disinfection of the environment surrounding burn patients. Environmental samples were collected from inpatient isolation rooms and the outpatient clinic in the burn unit, and comparisons were then made between the bacterial contamination levels observed with and without use of the HINS-light EDS. Over 1000 samples were taken. Inpatient studies, with sampling carried out at 0800 h, demonstrated a significant reduction in the average number of bacterial colonies following HINS-light EDS use of between 27% and 75%, (p<0.05). There was more variation when samples were taken at times of increased activity in the room. Outpatient studies during clinics demonstrated a 61% efficacy in the reduction of bacterial contamination on surfaces throughout the room during the course of a clinic (p=0.02). The results demonstrate that use of the HINS-light EDS allows efficacious bacterial reductions over and above that achieved by standard cleaning and infection control measures in both inpatient and outpatient settings in the burn unit

Selection in parental species predicts hybrid evolution

AbstractWhile hybridization is recognized as important in evolution, its contribution to adaptation and diversification remains poorly understood. Using genomically diverged island populations of the homoploid hybrid Italian sparrow, we test predictions for phenotypic trait values and evolvability based on patterns of parental species divergence in four plumage color traits. We find associations between parental divergence and trait evolution in Italian sparrows. Fixed major QTL in species differences lead to hybrids with higher trait variation, and hence evolvability, than the parent species. Back and crown plumage show no correlation between current within-parent variability and among-parent differentiation. For these traits, Italian sparrow phenotypes are biased towards axes of high parental differentiation and show greater phenotypic novelty along axes of low current parental evolvability, as predicted when major QTL are involved in species differences. Crown color has consistently evolved back towards one parent, while back color varies among islands. We also find significant among-population diversification within the Italian sparrow. Hence, hybridization of the same parent species can generate different phenotypes. In conclusion, we find support for parental phenotypic divergence patterns reflecting divergence mechanisms, and hence such patterns can be useful in predicting how hybridization alters the potential to evolve and adapt.</jats:p

Traps of multi-level governance. Lessons from the implementation of the Water Framework Directive in Italy

During recent decades, different patterns of multi-level governance (MLG) have spread across Europe as a consequence of Europeanisation of public policies, which have increasingly adopted decentralized and participatory procedures conceived as a tool of more effective and accountable policy-making. It appears, however, that the implementation of operational designs based on MLG may be rather problematic and it does not necessarily bring to the expected performance improvements. Referring to the case of the EU Water Framework Directive (2000/60/EC), which conceives the creation of new multi-level institutional settings as a key tool for enacting a new holistic approach to water management and protection, this article explores the difficulties that the implementation of such settings has brought in Italy, despite some favorable pre-conditions existing in the country. Evidence is provided that along with institutional and agency variables, the implementation effectiveness of MLG arrangements promoted by the EU can be challenged by their inherent characteristics

Universal decontamination of hospital surfaces in an occupied inpatient room with a continuous 405 nm light source

Background Previous work has shown that a ceiling-mounted, 405 nm high-intensity narrow-spectrum light environmental decontamination system (HINS-light EDS) reduces bacterial contamination of environmental surfaces in a burns unit by between 27% and 75%. Examination of the efficacy of the light over extended exposure times and its probable mode of action was performed. Aims Studies were designed to ascertain the correlation between bacterial kill achieved on sampled surface sites around the Burns Unit and both irradiance levels of the 405 nm light, and exposure time. Method Seventy samples were taken using contact agar plates from surfaces within an occupied side room in the burns unit before, during and after a seven day use of the HINS-light EDS. This was repeated in three separate studies. Statistical analysis determined if there was significant decrease in environmental contamination during prolonged periods of HINS-light treatment, and if there was a relationship between irradiance and bacterial kill. Findings A decrease of between 22% and 86% in the mean number of surface bacteria was shown during the use of the HINS-light EDS. When the light ceased to be used, increases of between 78% and 309% occurred. There was no correlation between bacterial kill and irradiance levels at each sampling site but strong correlation between bacterial kill and exposure time. Conclusions Prolonged exposure to the HINS-light EDS causes a cumulative decontamination of the surfaces within a burns unit. The importance of exposure time and possible airborne effect over irradiance levels is emphasised

Systems of education governance and cultures of justice in Ireland, Scotland and Pakistan

This chapter compares the issue of cultures of justice in the systems of education governance in three education systems: Ireland, Scotland and Pakistan. The focus for the comparison are the current policies which shape the regulation of education. These policies were reviewed to identify key issues relating to social justice and equality, decision-making and accountability. From the analysis of each system, three central issues were identified: firstly, the improvement of a state education system; secondly, the degree of decentralisation and centralisation in governance structures and thirdly, the expectations placed on school leaders. The chapter concludes by discussing the tensions between the drive for system improvement and opportunities for school leaders to build strategies to address issues of inequality in schools

Application of Bayesian statistics to estimate nitrous oxide emission factors of the nitrogen fertilisers in UK grasslands

Trapezoidal integration by linear interpolation of data points is by far the most commonly used method of cumulative flux calculations of nitrous oxide (N2O) in studies that use flux chambers; however, this method is incapable of providing accurate uncertainty estimates. A Bayesian approach was used to calculate N2O emission factors (EFs) and their associated uncertainties from flux chamber measurements made after the application of nitrogen fertilisers, in the form of ammonium nitrate (AN), urea (Ur) and urea treated with Agrotain® urease inhibitor (UI) at four grassland sites in the UK. The comparison between the cumulative fluxes estimated using the Bayesian and linear interpolation methods were broadly similar (R2=0.79); however, the Bayesian method was capable of providing realistic uncertainties when a limited number of data points is available. The study reports mean EF values (and 95% confidence intervals) of 0.60 ± 0.63, 0.29 ± 0.22 and 0.26 ± 0.17% of applied N emitted as N2O for the AN, Ur and UI treatments, respectively. There was no significant difference between N2O emissions from the Ur and UI treatments. In the case of the automatic chamber data collected at one site in this study, the data did not fit the log-normal model, implying that more complex models may be needed, particularly for measurement data with high temporal resolutioninfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Elevated tumor and serum levels of the hypoxia-associated protein osteopontin are associated with prognosis for soft tissue sarcoma patients

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Osteopontin (OPN) overexpression is correlated with a poor prognosis for tumor patients. However, only a few studies investigated the prognostic impact of expression of OPN in soft tissue sarcomas (STS) yet.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This study is based on tumor and serum samples from 93 adult STS patients. We investigated OPN protein levels in serum (n = 86) and tumor tissue (n = 80) by ELISA and OPN mRNA levels in tumor tissue (n = 68) by quantitative real-time PCR.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>No correlation was found between OPN levels in serum and tumor tissue. Moreover, an elevated OPN protein level in the serum was significantly associated with clinical parameters such as higher stage (p = 0.004), higher grade (p = 0.003), subtype (p = 0.002) and larger tumor size (p = 0.03). OPN protein levels in the tumor tissue were associated with higher stage (p = 0.06), higher grade (p = 0.003), subtype (p = 0.07) and an increased rate of relapse (p = 0.02). In addition, using a Cox's proportional hazards regression model, we found that an elevated OPN protein level in the serum and tumor tissue extracts is a significant negative prognostic factor for patients with STS. The relative risks of tumor-related death were 2.2 (p < 0.05) and 3.7 (p = 0.01), respectively.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our data suggest OPN protein in serum as well as in tumor tissue extracts is an important prognostic factor for soft tissue sarcoma patients.</p