Field experimental design for pesticide leaching – a modified large-scale lysimeter

Recent research on Danish groundwater has focused on clarifying the fate and transport of pesticides that leach through clayey till aquitards with low matrix permeability. Previously, these aquitards were considered as protective layers against contamination of underlying groundwater aquifers due to their low permeability characteristics. However, geological heterogeneities such as fractures and macropores have been recognised as preferential flow paths within low permeable clayey till (e.g. Beven & Germann 1982). The flow velocities within these preferential flow paths can be orders of magnitude higher than in the surrounding clay matrix and pose a major risk of transport of contaminants to the underlying aquifers (e.g. Nilsson et al. 2001). Previous studies of transport in fractured clayey till have focused on fully saturated conditions (e.g. Sidle et al. 1998; McKay et al. 1999). However, seasonal fluctuations of the groundwater table typically result in unsaturated conditions in the upper few metres of the clay deposits, resulting in different flow and transport conditions. Only a few experiments have examined the influence of unsaturated conditions on flow and solute (the dissolved inorganic and organic constituents) transport in fractured clayey till. These include small-scale laboratory column experiments on undisturbed soil monoliths (e.g. Jacobsen et al. 1997; Jørgensen et al. 1998), intermediate scale lysimeters (e.g. Fomsgaard et al. 2003) and field-scale tile drain experiments (e.g. Kjær et al. 2005). The different approaches each have limitations in terms of characterising flow and transport in fractured media. Laboratory studies of solute transport in soils (intact soil columns) are not exactly representative of field conditions due to variations in spatial variability and soil structure. In contrast, field studies hardly allow quantification of fluxes and mechanisms of transport. Column and lysimeter experiments are often limited in size, and tile-drain experiments on field scale do not provide spatial resolution and often have large uncertainties in mass balance calculations. Thus, in order to represent the overall natural fracture network systems on a field scale with respect to acquiring insights into flow and transport processes, the lysimeter needs to be larger than normal lysimeter size (< 1 m3). A modified large-scale lysimeter was therefore constructed by the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS) at the Avedøre experimental field site 15 km south of Copenhagen (Fig. 1). This lysimeter consisted of an isolated block (3.5 ×3.5 ×3.3 m) of unsaturated fractured clayey till with a volume sufficient to represent the overall preferential flow paths (natural fracture network) within lowpermeable clayey till at a field scale

<i>AHRR </i>(cg05575921) methylation extent of leukocyte DNA and lung cancer survival

<div><p>Background</p><p>Prior studies have shown that <i>AHRR</i> (cg05575921) hypomethylation may be a marker of smoking, lung cancer risk and potentially lung cancer survival (in some lung cancer subtypes). It is unknown if <i>AHRR</i> (cg05575921) hypomethylation is associated with reduced survival among lung cancer patients.</p><p>Methods</p><p>In bisulfite treated leukocyte DNA from 465 lung cancer patients from the Copenhagen prospective lung cancer study, we measured <i>AHRR</i> (cg05575921) methylation. 380 died during max follow-up of 4.4 years. Cox proportional hazard models were used to analyze survival as a function of <i>AHRR</i> (cg05575921) methylation.</p><p>Results</p><p>We observed the expected inverse correlation between cumulative smoking and <i>AHRR</i> methylation, as methylation (%) decreased (Coefficient -0.03; 95% confidence interval, -0.04- -0.02, p = 8.6x10^-15) for every pack-year. Cumulative smoking > 60 pack-years was associated with reduced survival (hazard ratio and 95% confidence interval 1.48; 1.05–2.09), however, <i>AHRR</i> (cg05575921) methylation was not associated with survival when adjusted for sex, body mass index, smoking status, ethnicity, performance status, TNM Classification, and histology type of lung cancer.</p><p>Conclusion</p><p><i>AHRR</i> (cg05575921) methylation is linked to smoking but does not provide independent prognostic information in lung cancer patients.</p></div

Patient-reported outcome and muscle-tendon pain after periacetabular osteotomy are related:1-year follow-up in 82 patients with hip dysplasia

Background and purpose — Larger prospective studies investigating periacetabular osteotomy (PAO) with patient-reported outcome measures developed for young patients are lacking. We investigated changes in patient-reported outcome (PRO), changes in muscle–tendon pain, and any associations between them from before to 1 year after PAO. Patients and methods — Outcome after PAO was investigated in 82 patients. PRO was investigated with the Copenhagen Hip and Groin Outcome Score (HAGOS). Muscle–tendon pain in the hip and groin region was identified with standardized clinical tests, and any associations between them were analyzed with multivariable linear regressions. Results — HAGOS subscales improved statistically significantly from before to 1 year after PAO with effect sizes ranging from medium to very large (0.66–1.37). Muscle–tendon pain in the hip and groin region showed a large decrease in prevalence from 74% (95% CI 64–83) before PAO to 35% (95% CI 25–47) 1 year after PAO. Statistically significant associations were observed between changes in HAGOS and change in the sum of muscle–tendon pain, ranging from –4.7 (95% CI –8.4 to –1.0) to –8.2 (95% CI –13 to –3.3) HAGOS points per extra painful entity across all subscales from before to 1 year after PAO. Interpretation — Patients with hip dysplasia experience medium to very large improvements in PRO 1 year after PAO, associated with decreased muscle–tendon pain. The understanding of hip dysplasia as solely a joint disease should be reconsidered since muscle–tendon pain seems to play an important role in relation to the outcome after PAO. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: 20140401PAO

Safety and security of drones in the oil and gas industry

This paper describes safety and security challenges and best practices of the use of drones in the oil and gas industry, with consideration of the harsh weather conditions in the Northern Territories of Norway. We have described the present status of the use of drones in air, on water (surface) and under water. Drones are being used in the industry to reduce or remove dangerous, dirty or dull operations from humans and to increase quality of data collection. The Norwegian oil and gas industry and authorities have a high focus on continuous improvement of safety, security and environmental issues. This has for instance resulted in the offshore helicopter transport in Norway to be among the safest offshore transport worldwide. Use of drones in the safety conscious oil and gas industry, should help us to improve the safety practices of drone use in general. Our suggestions are to focus on systematic data reporting of the use of drones, establish guidelines for risk assessments and operations, improve the use and testing of drones in the industry (i.e. build more experience) and support improved robustness and resilience of drone use. In addition, we see the need for improved quality of the interfaces between human operators and drones to ensure meaningful human control.publishedVersio