A 700 year record of Southern Hemisphere extratropical climate variability

Annually dated ice cores from West and East Antarctica provide proxies for past changes in atmospheric circulation over Antarctica and portions of the Southern Ocean, temperature in coastal West and East Antarctica, and the frequency of South Polar penetration of El Niño events. During the period AD 1700–1850, atmospheric circulation over the Antarctic and at least portions of the Southern Hemisphere underwent a mode switch departing from the out-of-phase alternation of multi-decadal long phases of EOF1 and EOF2 modes of the 850 hPa field over the Southern Hemisphere (as defined in the recent record by Thompson and Wallace, 2000; Thompson and Solomon, 2002) that characterizes the remainder of the 700 year long record. From AD 1700 to 1850, lower-tropospheric circulation was replaced by in-phase behavior of the Amundsen Sea Low component of EOF2 and the East Antarctic High component of EOF1. During the first phase of the mode switch, both West and East Antarctic temperatures declined, potentially in response to the increased extent of sea ice surrounding both regions. At the end of the mode switch, West Antarctic coastal temperatures rose and East Antarctic coastal temperatures fell, respectively, to their second highest and lowest of the record. Polar penetration of El Niño events increased during the mode switch. The onset of the AD 1700–1850 mode switch coincides with the extreme state of the Maunder Minimum in solar variability. Late 20th-century West Antarctic coastal temperatures are the highest in the record period, and East Antarctic coastal temperatures close to the lowest. Since AD 1700, extratropical regions of the Southern Hemisphere have experienced significant climate variability coincident with changes in both solar variability and greenhouse gase

The experience of coercion and forced education in a labour market activation context.

On 28 November, 2010 the Irish government entered the European Troika’s bailout programme. The austerity measures that came with it had a demoralising effect on the hundreds of thousands left unemployed after the economic downturn. The consequences of this are that it is the most vulnerable in society who are hit hardest by austerity. So, this thesis uses critical theory as a theoretical framework to highlight how the hidden curriculum contributes to a negative experience in first chance education. Also, the hidden curriculum prepares us for the workplace and contributes to why we tend to succumb to and obey the authority figures we encounter in life. From a Marxist perspective, capitalism is not just about economic exploitation. The ideas of the ruling elite are crucial in supporting this ideology and they depend on consent to maintain their power, which is achieved by controlling influential institutions such as the police, armed forces and the media. In relation to this research, it is the Department of Social Protection and labour market activation that results in job seekers experiencing coercion and forced education. These changes to policy and a renegotiation of the social contract have meant that someone who is in receipt of social welfare payments ”must meet certain conditions or face payment reduction or sanctions if they do not attend meetings or participate in appropriate employment schemes, training or work experience” (Citizens Information, 2017). The methodology used is qualitative and three life history interviews were conducted. This thesis argues that labour market activation policy completely ignores the biographical context of the individual. Ultimately, when you take someone out of their context and then place them in an unfamiliar and uncomfortable environment, it can be a negative experience

The experience of coercion and forced education in a labour market activation context.

On 28 November, 2010 the Irish government entered the European Troika’s bailout programme. The austerity measures that came with it had a demoralising effect on the hundreds of thousands left unemployed after the economic downturn. The consequences of this are that it is the most vulnerable in society who are hit hardest by austerity. So, this thesis uses critical theory as a theoretical framework to highlight how the hidden curriculum contributes to a negative experience in first chance education. Also, the hidden curriculum prepares us for the workplace and contributes to why we tend to succumb to and obey the authority figures we encounter in life. From a Marxist perspective, capitalism is not just about economic exploitation. The ideas of the ruling elite are crucial in supporting this ideology and they depend on consent to maintain their power, which is achieved by controlling influential institutions such as the police, armed forces and the media. In relation to this research, it is the Department of Social Protection and labour market activation that results in job seekers experiencing coercion and forced education. These changes to policy and a renegotiation of the social contract have meant that someone who is in receipt of social welfare payments ”must meet certain conditions or face payment reduction or sanctions if they do not attend meetings or participate in appropriate employment schemes, training or work experience” (Citizens Information, 2017). The methodology used is qualitative and three life history interviews were conducted. This thesis argues that labour market activation policy completely ignores the biographical context of the individual. Ultimately, when you take someone out of their context and then place them in an unfamiliar and uncomfortable environment, it can be a negative experience

A response to “Likelihood ratio as weight of evidence: a closer look” by Lund and Iyer

Recently, Lund and Iyer (L&I) raised an argument regarding the use of likelihood ratios in court. In our view, their argument is based on a lack of understanding of the paradigm. L&I argue that the decision maker should not accept the expert’s likelihood ratio without further consideration. This is agreed by all parties. In normal practice, there is often considerable and proper exploration in court of the basis for any probabilistic statement. We conclude that L&I argue against a practice that does not exist and which no one advocates. Further we conclude that the most informative summary of evidential weight is the likelihood ratio. We state that this is the summary that should be presented to a court in every scientific assessment of evidential weight with supporting information about how it was constructed and on what it was based

Understanding the Canadian adult CT head rule trial: use of the theoretical domains framework for process evaluation

BACKGROUND: The Canadian CT Head Rule was prospectively derived and validated to assist clinicians with diagnostic decision-making regarding the use of computed tomography (CT) in adult patients with minor head injury. A recent intervention trial failed to demonstrate a decrease in the rate of head CTs following implementation of the rule in Canadian emergency departments. Yet, the same intervention, which included a one-hour educational session and reminders at the point of requisition, was successful in reducing cervical spine imaging rates in the same emergency departments. The reason for the varied effect of the intervention across these two behaviours is unclear. There is an increasing appreciation for the use of theory to conduct process evaluations to better understand how strategies are linked with outcomes in implementation trials. The Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF) has been used to explore health professional behaviour and to design behaviour change interventions but, to date, has not been used to guide a theory-based process evaluation. In this proof of concept study, we explored whether the TDF could be used to guide a retrospective process evaluation to better understand emergency physicians’ responses to the interventions employed in the Canadian CT Head Rule trial. METHODS: A semi-structured interview guide, based on the 12 domains from the TDF, was used to conduct telephone interviews with project leads and physician participants from the intervention sites in the Canadian CT Head Rule trial. Two reviewers independently coded the anonymised interview transcripts using the TDF as a coding framework. Relevant domains were identified by: the presence of conflicting beliefs within a domain; the frequency of beliefs; and the likely strength of the impact of a belief on the behaviour. RESULTS: Eight physicians from four of the intervention sites in the Canadian CT Head Rule trial participated in the interviews. Barriers likely to assist with understanding physicians’ responses to the intervention in the trial were identified in six of the theoretical domains: beliefs about consequences; beliefs about capabilities; behavioural regulation; memory, attention and decision processes; environmental context and resources; and social influences. Despite knowledge that the Canadian CT Head Rule was highly sensitive and reliable for identifying clinically important brain injuries and strong beliefs about the benefits for using the rule, a number of barriers were identified that may have prevented physicians from consistently applying the rule. CONCLUSION: This proof of concept study demonstrates the use of the TDF as a guiding framework to design a retrospective theory-based process evaluation. There is a need for further development and testing of methods for using the TDF to guide theory-based process evaluations running alongside behaviour change intervention trials

Study of Mill Island ice core (East Antarctica): A sensitive site for high resolution ocean climate signals?

第2回極域科学シンポジウム　氷床コアセッション 11月16日（水） 国立極地研究所 2階大会議

Improved hippocampal dose with reduced margin radiotherapy for glioblastoma multiforme

BACKGROUND: To dosimetrically evaluate the effect of reduced margin radiotherapy on hippocampal dose for glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) patients. METHODS: GBM patients enrolled on the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) 0825 trial at our institution were identified. Standard RTOG 0825 expansions were 2 cm + 3-5 mm from the gross tumor volume (GTV) to the clinical tumor volume (CTV) and from the CTV to the planning tumor volume (PTV), respectively. These same patients also had reduced margin tumor volumes generated with 8 mm (GTV to CTV) + 3 mm (CTV to PTV) expansions. Individual plans were created for both standard and reduced margin structures. The dose-volume histograms were statistically compared with a paired, two-tailed Student’s t-test with a significance level of p < 0.05. RESULTS: A total of 16 patients were enrolled on RTOG 0825. The reduced margins resulted in statistically significant reductions in hippocampal dose at all evaluated endpoints. The hippocampal D(max) was reduced from a mean of 61.4 Gy to 56.1 Gy (8.7%), D(40%) was reduced from 49.9 Gy to 36.5 Gy (26.9%), D(60%) was reduced from 32.7 Gy to 18.7 Gy (42.9%) and the D(80%) was reduced from 27.3 Gy to 15.3 Gy (44%). CONCLUSIONS: The use of reduced margin PTV expansions in the treatment of GBM patients results in significant reductions in hippocampal dose. Though the exact clinical benefit of this reduction is currently unclear, this study does provide support for a future prospective trial evaluating the neurocognitive benefits of reduced margin tumor volumes in the treatment of GBM patients

ZeroWIN Vision Conference

*Test* to check feasibility for use for ZeroWIN conferenc

Understanding context in knowledge translation: a concept analysis study protocol

AimTo conduct a concept analysis of clinical practice contexts (work environments) that facilitate or militate against the uptake of research evidence by healthcare professionals in clinical practice. This will involve developing a clear definition of context by describing its features, domains and defining characteristics.BackgroundThe context where clinical care is delivered influences that care. While research shows that context is important to knowledge translation (implementation), we lack conceptual clarity on what is context, which contextual factors probably modify the effect of knowledge translation interventions (and hence should be considered when designing interventions) and which contextual factors themselves could be targeted as part of a knowledge translation intervention (context modification).DesignConcept analysis.MethodsThe Walker and Avant concept analysis method, comprised of eight systematic steps, will be used: (1) concept selection; (2) determination of aims; (3) identification of uses of context; (4) determination of defining attributes of context; (5) identification/construction of a model case of context; (6) identification/construction of additional cases of context; (7) identification/construction of antecedents and consequences of context; and (8) definition of empirical referents of context. This study is funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (January 2014).DiscussionThis study will result in a much needed framework of context for knowledge translation, which identifies specific elements that, if assessed and used to tailor knowledge translation activities, will result in increased research use by nurses and other healthcare professionals in clinical practice, ultimately leading to better patient care.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/111196/1/jan12574.pd

Social and acoustic determinants of perceived laughter intensity

Existing research links subjective judgments of perceived laughter intensity with features such as duration, amplitude, fundamental frequency, and voicing. We examine these associations in a new database of social laughs produced in situations inducing amusement, embarrassment, and schadenfreude. We also test the extent to which listeners’ judgments of laughter intensity vary as a function of the social situation in which laughs were produced