The interpretation of brain natriuretic peptide in critical care patients; will it ever be useful?

The measurement of B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) is recommended for the diagnosis of decompensated heart failure, the prognosis of chronic heart failure is worse if BNP is increased and studies suggest that BNP is useful to guide therapy. A study by Di Somma and colleagues adds to the body of evidence showing that patients with a marked decrease in BNP concentrations during their hospital admission are less likely to be readmitted with a further adverse cardiac event than patients in whom BNP fails to decrease. However, the wider interpretation of BNP concentrations in critically ill patients with other conditions remains uncertain

Developing an agro-forestry system for production of a commercial organic chicken flock focusing on profits on a 'Triple bottom Line'

In most modern free-range poultry systems birds do not fully utilise the range provided. Knowledge of the ancestral history of the domestic chicken, and research observations suggests benefits of agro-forestry systems for chickens. A commercial organic poultry agro-forestry system was developed for Sheepdrove Organic Farm, Berkshire, UK, affording the benefi ts of an agro-forestry system, whilst retaining commercial viability. Five avenues of highly diverse parallel hedges incorporating tree, shrub and herb species were planted. On-going monitoring of the system was put in place to evaluate its development and help assess the types of ‘profits’ the system delivers. Conventionally profits tend to be viewed purely in terms of economic gain. However, in an organic farming system more emphasis is placed on the intrinsic and sustainable qualities it has. Organic farming adopts a holistic approach to profit, viewing it in environmental, social and economic terms. The profits afforded by the system are discussed

Job creation and job destruction in Estonia: labour reallocation and structural changes

This paper documents and analyses gross job flows and their determinants in Estonia over the years 1995-2001, using a unique database from the Estonian Business Registry. This database contains all (including also micro and small firms) officially registered firms in Estonia, the total number being almost 52,000. There are several important findings in the paper. Our results show that job flows (job creation and job destruction rates) have been extremely high in Estonia and are comparable to the levels documented for the US. These rates have not decreased recently, although worker flows (transitions between labour market states) have dropped. We also found that the firm-specific component in job flows excess of employment change had relatively lower importance than in western studies due to the emergence of small and medium-sized enterprises and labour reallocation between the economic sectors. The high inter-sectoral mobility has helped maintain high levels of job flows, while both are high also due to a favourable institutional environment, especially due to low start-up costs and a large share of micro enterprises

Lighting, well-being and work performance: A review of the literature

Commissioned White Paper Report for Philips International

Creative destruction and transition: the effects of firm entry and exit on productivity growth in Estonia

This paper presents one of the first studies of firm demographics in Estonia, particularly, on the processes of firm entry and exit as well as survival analysis of new firms. Also decompositions of productivity change into components consisting of resource reallocation, firm entry and exit, and productivity growth within continuing firms is carried out. Our results, derived from a novel database of the population of Estonian firms, show that firm turnover has been rather high in Estonia during the observed period from 1995 to 2001, resulting from low institutional entry barriers and emergence of the SME sector. The high survival rates for new firms and surviving firms' relatively fast growth could reflect their relatively high productivity compared to incumbent firms and changes in the sectoral structure of the economy. The decomposition of productivity change shows that the high productivity growth has been mostly from within-firm productivity growth (e.g. the adoption of new production technologies and organizational changes), but the reallocation of production factors (especially the exit of low productivity units) has played an important role as well

Wij rijken en de armoede: notities over wat we kunnen doen zonder grote offers te brengen

Armoede is één van de dringendste sociale problemen waarover de ethiek iets te zeggen moet hebben. Eén heel belangrijke ethische vraag in verband met armoede is wat rijke individuen ertegen moeten doen. Mijn bijdrage, die deel uitmaakt van een groter project over deze vraag, gaat over een verwante kwestie: welke voor armoedebestrijding relevante beperkingen kunnen rijke individuen bij de besteding van hun geld zoal in acht nemen zonder dat dat voor hen enig (groot) kwaad met zich mee brengt? Ik onderzoek onder andere de stellingen dat rijken, zonder dat het voor hen enig (groot) kwaad oplevert, doorgaans tienden kunnen geven, binnen hun ecologische voetafdruk kunnen leven, en fair trade-producten kunnen kopen. In de bijdrage ga ik uit van één bepaalde theorie over wat een goed leven is; maar ik zal ook ingaan op de vraag of de onderzochte stellingen met andere theorieën van goed leven te verenigen zijn.Jos Philips studeerde filosofie, sociologie en theologie in Nijmegen, Berkeley, Tübingen en Heerlen, en is momenteel junior onderzoeker bij de vakgroep filosofische ethiek aan de Nijmeegse universiteit. Zijn onderzoek gaat erover welke plichten rijken als individuen hebben om armoede te bestrijden

Looking out for Mary Carter: Collusive Settlement Agreements in Washington Tort Litigation

Courts and commentators disagree as to the propriety of Mary Carter agreements, pseudo-settlement devices used in multiparty litigation that unite the interests of a plaintiff and a cooperating defendant, and maintain that defendant\u27s presence at trial. Most courts tolerate these arrangements provided that they are disclosed, while a distinct minority render them void. Washington courts have not espoused a definite position, although recent decisions suggest a tolerant stance. This Comment argues that the use of Mary Carters is inconsistent with Washington tort law, and that Washington courts should therefore prohibit them entirely. This may be accomplished by treating all Mary Carters as final settlements of a plaintiff\u27s claim against an agreeing defendant and requiring dismissal of that defendant, an approach suggested by the nature of the agreements themselves

Panel Session II - Sea Launch Overview BCSC Perspective

Panel 3 - New Space Panel Chair: Andrew W. V. Clark, Space Frontier Operations Panel Members: Gene Meyers, Ian Moore, Malcolm Phillip

Future Directions for the Space Program with Special Reference to the Commercial and Industrial Opportunities

It is a pleasure for me to be here, and I welcome the opportunity to discuss with you the subject of space commercialization in the 1980\u27s and beyond. Let me say at the outset that the only forecast of the future that can be made with certainty is that our predictions don\u27t often come to pass; at least, not in the manner or at the time we envision. It is especially difficult to forecast in a field as young and rapidly evolving as that of space flight. We have, after all, an experience base of less than 25 years on which to make projections. We can however, usefully think about likely directions of the space program, however, and it is perhaps instructive in this regard to reflect on the development of aviation as an historical model in which great technological changes caused rapid growth in both capabilities and markets