Broadening Responsibilities: Consideration Of The Potential To Broaden The Role Of Uniformed Fire Service Employees

What is this report about? This report, commissioned by the National Joint Council for Local Authority Fire and Rescue Services (NJC), aims to identify what impact, if any, firefighters can have on the delivery of emergency medical response and wider community health interventions in the UK. What are the overall conclusions? Appropriately trained and equipped firefighters co-responding1 to targeted, specific time critical medical events, such as cardiac arrest, can improve patient survival rates. The data also indicate that there is support from fire service staff – and a potential need from members of the public, particularly the elderly, isolated or vulnerable – to expand ‘wider work’. This includes winter warmth assessments, Safe and Well checks, community defibrillator training and client referrals when staff believe someone may have dementia, are vulnerable or even, for example, have substance dependencies such as an alcohol addiction. However, there is currently insufficient data to estimate the net benefit of this work

Bayesian inference for wind field retrieval

In many problems in spatial statistics it is necessary to infer a global problem solution by combining local models. A principled approach to this problem is to develop a global probabilistic model for the relationships between local variables and to use this as the prior in a Bayesian inference procedure. We show how a Gaussian process with hyper-parameters estimated from Numerical Weather Prediction Models yields meteorologically convincing wind fields. We use neural networks to make local estimates of wind vector probabilities. The resulting inference problem cannot be solved analytically, but Markov Chain Monte Carlo methods allow us to retrieve accurate wind fields

Detection limits of organic compounds achievable with intense, short-pulse lasers

Many organic molecules have strong absorption bands which can be accessed by ultraviolet short pulse lasers to produce efficient ionization. This resonant multiphoton ionization scheme has already been exploited as an ionization source in time-of-flight mass spectrometers used for environmental trace analysis. In the present work we quantify the ultimate potential of this technique by measuring absolute ion yields produced from the interaction of 267 nm femtosecond laser pulses with the organic molecules indole and toluene, and gases Xe, N2 and O2. Using multiphoton ionization cross sections extracted from these results, we show that the laser pulse parameters required for real-time detection of aromatic molecules at concentrations of one part per trillion in air and a limit of detection of a few attomoles are achievable with presently available commercial laser systems. The potential applications for the analysis of human breath, blood and tissue samples are discussed

Volumetric Flow Imaging Reveals the Importance of Vortex Ring Formation in Squid Swimming Tail-First and Arms-First

Squids use a pulsed jet and fin movements to swim both arms-first (forward) and tail-first (backward). Given the complexity of the squid multi-propulsor system, 3D velocimetry techniques are required for the comprehensive study of wake dynamics. Defocusing digital particle tracking velocimetry, a volumetric velocimetry technique, and high-speed videography were used to study arms-first and tail-first swimming of brief squid Lolliguncula brevis over a broad range of speeds [0-10 dorsal mantle lengths (DML) s-1) in a swim tunnel. Although there was considerable complexity in the wakes of these multi-propulsor swimmers, 3D vortex rings and their derivatives were prominent reoccurring features during both tail-first and arms-first swimming, with the greatest jet and fin flow complexity occurring at intermediate speeds (1.5-3.0 DML s-1). The jet generally produced the majority of thrust during rectilinear swimming, increasing in relative importance with speed, and the fins provided no thrust at speeds \u3e4.5 DML s-1. For both swimming orientations, the fins sometimes acted as stabilizers, producing negative thrust (drag), and consistently provided lift at low/intermediate speeds (\u3c2.0 DML s-1) to counteract negative buoyancy. Propulsive efficiency (η) increased with speed irrespective of swimming orientation, and eta for swimming sequences with clear isolated jet vortex rings was significantly greater (η=78.6 +/- 7.6%, mean +/- s.d.) than that for swimming sequences with clear elongated regions of concentrated jet vorticity (η=67.9 +/- 19.2%). This study reveals the complexity of 3D vortex wake flows produced by nekton with hydrodynamically distinct propulsors

A new cache of Eoarchaean detrital zircons from the Singhbhum craton, eastern India and constraints on early Earth geodynamics

The dominant geodynamic processes that underpin the formation and evolution of Earth's early crust remain enigmatic calling for new information from less studied ancient cratonic nuclei. Here, we present U–Pb ages and Hf isotopic compositions of detrital zircon grains from ∼2.9 Ga old quartzites and magmatic zircon from a 3.505 Ga old dacite from the Iron Ore Group of the Singhbhum craton, eastern India. The detrital zircon grains range in age between 3.95 Ga and 2.91 Ga. Together with the recently reported Hadean, Eoarchean xenocrystic (up to 4.24 Ga) and modern detritus zircon grains from the Singhbhum craton, our results suggest that the Eoarchean detrital zircons represent crust generated by recycling of Hadean felsic crust formed at ∼4.3–4.2 Ga and ∼3.95 Ga. We observe a prominent shift in Hf isotope compositions at ∼3.6–3.5 Ga towards super-chondritic values, which signify an increased role for depleted mantle and the relevance of plate tectonics. The Paleo-, Mesoarchean zircon Hf isotopic record in the craton indicates crust generation involving the role of both depleted and enriched mantle sources. We infer a short-lived suprasubduction setting around ∼3.6–3.5 Ga followed by mantle plume activity during the Paleo-, Mesoarchean crust formation in the Singhbhum craton. The Singhbhum craton provides an additional repository for Earth's oldest materials.Financial support from the Ministry of Earth Sciences, New Delhi for Excimer 193 nm LA system at CSIR-NGRI MoES/P.O.(Seismo)/1(245)/2014 and for the project on Singhbhum craton to S. D., E. V. S. S. K. B., B. S. and T. V. K (No. MoES/ P.O.(Geosci)45/2015; GAP-738-28EVB). This work forms part of the CSIR-NGRI projects INDEX (PSC0204) and GEOMET. Support from Australian Scientific Instruments and Geoscience Australia in providing access to the SHRIMP IIe, and The ANU for SEM imaging, is acknowledged. Y. J. B. thanks the DAE-Raja Ramanna Fellowship

Barriers and facilitators to change in the organisation and delivery of endoscopy services in England and Wales: a focus group study

Objective: Explore professional views of changes to gastroenterology service organisation and delivery and barriers and facilitators impacting on change. The work was undertaken as part of an evaluation in endoscopy service provision catalysed by the Modernising Endoscopy Services Programme of the Modernisation Agency. Design: Focus groups followed by analysis and group-working activities identifying key themes. Setting: English and Welsh secondary care gastroenterology units. Participants: 20 professionals working in gastroenterology in England and Wales. Medical, surgical and nursing specialists including endoscopy nurses. Opportunistic sampling to include senior people in leadership and management roles who were directly involved in service modernisation, excluding those involved in the Modernisation Endoscopy Services Programme. Results: Four 1.5 h focus groups took place in 2007. Summative and thematic analyses captured essential aspects of text and achieved consensus on key themes. 4 themes were revealed: 'loss of personal autonomy and erosion of professionalism', 'lack of senior management understanding', 'barriers and facilitators to change' and 'differences between English and Welsh units'. Themes indicated that low staff morale, lack of funding and senior management support were barriers to effective change. Limitations to the study include the disproportionately low number of focus group attendees from English units and the time delay in reporting these findings. Conclusions: Despite ambitions to implement change, ineffective management support continued to hamper modernisation of service organisation and delivery. While the National Health Service Modernisation Agency Modernising Endoscopy Services Programme acted as a catalyst for change, affecting the way staff work, communicate and think, it was not effective in heralding change itself. However, gastroenterologists were keen to consider the potential for change and future service modernisation. The methodological framework of innovative qualitative enquiry offers comprehensive and rigorous enhancement of quantitative studies, including randomised trials, when a mixed methods approach is needed.7 page(s