Growing in Glasgow: Innovative practices and emerging policy pathways for urban agriculture

Driven by shared concerns about climate change, social justice and health and wellbeing, Urban Agriculture (UA) is an emergent global movement. In this paper, we present an exploratory case study of UA practice on the Southside of Glasgow, UK that traced the emergence and development of four UA projects. Data from the four projects revealed a diversity of practices, including temporary gardening projects organised by local volunteers, a community and market garden operated by a charity, a food shop and vegetable distribution service run by a social enterprise, and a permanent growing space for charities and schools provided by local government. UA practitioners in Glasgow have sought to re-purpose vacant and derelict land, build social cohesion, contribute to environmental and food sustainability and provide participation space for marginalised groups. Reflecting on future avenues for research on UA in Glasgow, we have identified two broad policy pathways that are emerging both at the local level and through national legislation in Scotland to harness local urban food growing and support UA. We conclude by pointing to a need to preserve the self-organising spirit of UA in Scotland as new legislation comes into force

Signal chain for the Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS)

The AVIRIS instrument has a separate dedicated analog signal processing chain for each of its four spectrometers. The signal chains amplify low-level focal-plane line array signals (5 to 10 mV full-scale span) in the presence of larger multiplexing signals (approx 150 mV) providing the data handling system a ten-bit digital word (for each spectrometer) each 1.3 microns. This signal chain provides automatic correction for the line array dark signal nonuniformity (which can approach the full-scale signal span)

Mutations in the WNT mediator, DVL1, cause an osteosclerotic form of Robinow Syndrome

This project aimed to clinically and biochemically characterise a novel phenotype which we have named Robinow Syndrome – Osteosclerotic type (RS-OS). Robinow Syndrome (RS) is a rare form of mesomelic dwarfism defined by a distinctive facial gestalt known as “fetal facies” – a combination of features including hypertelorism and midface hypoplasia. RS can be caused by loss-of-function mutations in genes encoding components of planar cell polarity WNT signalling. Osteosclerosis is associated with gain-of-function mutations in mediators of a different aspect of WNT signalling, the canonical WNT pathway. This thesis details three sporadic cases of RS-OS. Before this project began a combination of next generation and Sanger sequencing identified that two of these individuals had similar heterozygous de novo mutations in gene for the pan-WNT component DVL1, which has not previously been associated with RS. A third case was identified during this project and Sanger sequencing revealed another, similar, de novo mutation in DVL1. All three DVL1 mutations fall within the 14th exon and cause a -1 frameshift which predicts a DVL1 product with the wild type C-terminal sequence replaced by a novel amino acid sequence, which is shared across all three affected individuals. We hypothesised that these DVL1 mutations cause osteosclerosis through a gain-of-function leading to an increase in canonical WNT signalling. Transcript from cell lysates of cultured dermal fibroblasts taken from an affected individual were analysed by Sanger sequencing and restriction enzyme digest revealed that the mutation-bearing mRNA was endogenously expressed. Transient transfection of mouse C2C12 cells with EGFP-tagged DVL1 constructs showed similar protein levels between mutant and wild type DVL1 with fluorescent Western blotting. Taken together these experiments showed that the mutant allele is endogenously transcribed as a persistent mRNA, and that the majority of the protein product of that transcript is stable. Canonical WNT signalling was studied with a transient transfection-based TOPFlash assay. These revealed that, paradoxical to the osteosclerotic phenotype, the mutant DVL1 was significantly less active in the canonical WNT pathway than wild type DVL1. However the co-expression of the mutant DVL1 alongside the wild type DVL1 lead to a significant (~3-fold, P < 0.01) increase in canonical WNT activity over the same amount of wild type DVL1 expressed alone. This co-expression may explain the clinical osteosclerosis: the affected individuals are heterozygous for the DVL1 mutations thus are likely to co-express mutant and wild type DVL1. This work establishes that novel mutations in DVL1, a gene previously not associated with RS, causes an osteosclerotic form of RS. These mutations are likely to lead to osteosclerosis through a gain-of-function mechanism, with an increase in canonical WNT signalling. However this gain-of-function, in vitro, depends upon the presence of wild type DVL1 alongside the mutant DVL1. This wild type-dependent gain-of-function is, to our knowledge, unique amongst Mendelian disorders

Current State of Commercial Wearable Technology in Physical Activity Monitoring 2015-2017

International Journal of Exercise Science 11(7): 503-515, 2018. Wearable physical activity trackers are a popular and useful method to collect biometric information at rest and during exercise. The purpose of this systematic review was to summarize recent findings of wearable devices for biometric information related to steps, heart rate, and caloric expenditure for several devices that hold a large portion of the market share. Searches were conducted in both PubMed and SPORTdiscus. Filters included: humans, within the last 5 years, English, full-text, and adult 19+ years. Manuscripts were retained if they included an exercise component of 5-min or greater and had 20 or more participants. A total of 10 articles were retained for this review. Overall, wearable devices tend to underestimate energy expenditure compared to criterion laboratory measures, however at higher intensities of activity energy expenditure is underestimated. All wrist and forearm devices had a tendency to underestimate heart rate, and this error was generally greater at higher exercise intensities and those that included greater arm movement. Heart rate measurement was also typically better at rest and while exercising on a cycle ergometer compared to exercise on a treadmill or elliptical machine. Step count was underestimated at slower walking speeds and in free-living conditions, but improved accuracy at faster speeds. The majority of the studies reviewed in the present manuscript employed different methods to assess validity and reliability of wearable technology, making it difficult to compare devices. Standardized protocols would provide guidance for researchers to evaluate research-grade devices as well as commercial devices used by the lay public

The Adventures of the Rocketeer: Accelerated Motion Under the Influence of Expanding Space

It is well known that interstellar travel is bounded by the finite speed of light, but on very large scales any rocketeer would also need to consider the influence of cosmological expansion on their journey. This paper examines accelerated journeys within the framework of Friedmann- Lemaitre-Robertson-Walker universes, illustrating how the duration of a fixed acceleration sharply divides exploration over interstellar and intergalactic distances. Furthermore, we show how the universal expansion increases the difficulty of intergalactic navigation, with small uncertainties in cosmological parameters resulting in significantly large deviations. This paper also shows that, contrary to simplistic ideas, the motion of any rocketeer is indistinguishable from Newtonian gravity if the acceleration is kept small.Comment: 9 pages, 7 figures, accepted for publication in PAS

Advancing Nuclear Security:Evaluating Progress and Setting New Goals

The threat of nuclear and radiological terrorism has not disappeared, though the world has made important progress in reducing these risks. Urgent new steps are needed to build effective and lasting nuclear security worldwide. The nuclear security effort must now shift from short-term improvements toward a focus on a continued search for excellence, lasting as long as terrorist groups bent on mass destruction and the nuclear and radiological materials they might use both continue to exist

New Author Guidelines in Statistical Reporting: Embracing an Era Beyond p \u3c .05

International Journal of Exercise Science 13(1): 1-5, 2020. Statistical reporting of quantitative research data has been plagued by potential bias and reporting suppression due to a single numerical output: the p-value. While there is great importance in its merit, creating a pass-fail system (set at point of .05) has created a culture of researchers submitting their project’s data to a filing cabinet if it does not yield “statistical significance” based on this value. The editors of the International Journal of Exercise Science are following the American Statistical Association’s call for statistical reform by adjusting our reporting guidelines to the following requirements: [1.] make an intentional effort to move away from statements “statistically significant” or “not significant;” [2] all p-values are to be reported in their raw, continuous form; [3.] measures of the magnitude of effect must be presented with all p-values; [4.] either an a-priori power analysis with relevant citations should be included or post-hoc power calculations should accompany p-values and measures of effect. The ultimate goal of this editorial is to join with other scholars to push the field toward transparency in reporting and critical, thoughtful evaluation of research

Cutting Too Deep: The Obama Administration’s Proposals for Nuclear Security Spending Reductions

The Obama administration has proposed steep cuts in funding for improving security for dangerous nuclear materials—cuts which, if approved, would slow progress toward preventing the essential ingredients of nuclear bombs from falling into terrorist hands. In Cutting too Deep, Matthew Bunn, Nickolas Roth, and William Tobey review funding trends over the past four years and describe how the proposed cuts would delay nuclear and radiological material removals, research reactor conversions, and other important work. They recommend that Congress should act to reduce the scale of the proposed cuts by at least $100 million, and should consider other substantial increases in funding for nonproliferation programs. They call on the administration to increase its nuclear security budget request for the next fiscal year, and to adopt as a principle that no effort that shows promise of offering a significant and lasting reduction in the risk of nuclear terrorism should be slowed by lack of funds

The Risk of Bias in Validity and Reliability Studies Testing Physiological Variables using Consumer-Grade Wearable Technology: A Systematic Review and WEAR-BOT Analysis

INTRODUCTION: Wearable technology is a quickly evolving field, and new devices with new features to measure/estimate physiological variables are being released constantly. Despite their use, the validity of the devices are largely unknown to the users or researchers, and the quality of the studies that do test validity and reliability vary widely. PURPOSE: Therefore, the purpose of this systematic review was to review the current validity and reliability literature concerning consumer-grade wearable technology measurements/estimates of physiological variables during exercise. Additionally, we sought to perform risk of bias assessments utilizing the novel WEArable technology Risk of Bias and Objectivity Tool (WEAR-BOT). METHODS: This review was conducted following PRISMA guidelines, searching 3 databases: Google Scholar, Scopus, and SPORTDiscus. After screening, 46 papers were identified that met the pre-determined criteria. Then data was extracted and risk of bias assessment performed by independent researchers. Descriptive statistics, weighted averages of mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) and Pearson correlations were calculated. Sample size statistics were performed utilizing the lower 95% confidence interval of the weighted correlation average. RESULTS: Of the 46 papers reviewed, 44 performed validity testing, while 9 performed reliability. The weighted average for MAPE was 12.48% for heart rate (HR) and 30.70% for energy expenditure (EE). The weighted average for Pearson correlations was 0.737 for HR and 0.672 for EE. Risk of bias assessment of validity studies resulted in 30/44 studies being classified as having a “High Risk of Bias”, and 14/44 having “Some Risk of Bias”. None had a “Low Risk of Bias”, according to the novel WEAR-BOT. For reliability studies, 7/9 were classified as “High Risk of Bias”, 2 as “Some Risk of Bias”, and 0 as “Low Risk of Bias”. CONCLUSION: The risk of bias assessment and descriptive statistics paint a troubling picture of the overall state of validity and reliability studies. Statistical analyses, methods, and reporting vary excessively. This review and associated WEAR-BOT analysis can be used by researchers to help standardize methodology, analytics, and reporting of validation and reliability studies of consumer-grade wearable technology