The Determinants of Self-Rated Health in the Republic of Ireland - Further Evidence and Future Directions

This paper examines the determinants of self-rated health in the Republic of Ireland using data from the 2001 Quarterly National Household Survey Health Module and the 2005 ESRI Time Usage Survey. Results indicate that self-rated health is a useful proxy for self-reported chronic illness indices. Higher education, having private medical insurance cover and being married is associated with better self-rated health. The strong inverse relationship between age and self-rated health is found to be robust to the inclusion of self-reported morbidity. Caregivers display lower self-rated health, even after controlling for age, marital status and education. We find only minor effects of gender. Understanding further the causal nature of the above associations is a key issue for future research.

SHARE Ireland: First Results

The study team gratefully acknowledges funding support from the Irish Research Council for Humanities and Social Sciences under the Thematic Research Programmes initiative. Mark McGovern from UCD and Dr. Berengere Davin from NUIG provided substantial and excellent assistance in the drafting of this document. Christianne Hellmanzik, Lorna Sweeney and Fearghal O.hAodha also provided excellent research assistance at various stages of this project. We would like to thank Dr. Dorothy Watson of the ESRI who co-ordinated the field-work and her team of interviewers. Dr. Marcel Das of CenTERdata in Tilburg University and Simon Holroyd of NATCEN provided substantial technical assistance. This study would not have been possible in Ireland without the support of Professor Axel Boersch-Supan of the Mannheim Institute of Aging (MEA) who leads the European SHARE study. We would also like to sincerely thank the many participants who gave their time for this important study.share, ireland, results

Reusing Distance Courseware to Enable Blended Delivery: A New Zealand Case Study

Digital distance course materials can be used across different forms of education delivery. In particular, courseware designed for asynchronous digital distance education can serve as the basis for blended learning, which features a different teaching role and fuller interpersonal experience. Blended learning can be used to extend programme opportunities across population regions where a full, lecture-based model might not be viable. This case study explores the experiences of three regional polytechnics in New Zealand that adopted and modified courseware created for digital distance learners studying asynchronously. The courseware was used to provide local students with more flexible study options, drawing on high quality courseware that had been centrally created by a team of experienced courseware designers and Subject Matter Experts (SMEs)

Easy and accessible way to calibrate a fluorescence microscope and to create a microplastic identification key

We present here a technique for setting up detection limits on any fluorescent microscope in conjunction with the fluorophore Nile Red for microplastic identification. Our method also describes a rigorous morphology-specific identification key for microplastics to reduce subjectivity between researchers. The detection limits were established for nine common polymer types and five natural substrates which could result in false-positive signals when using Nile Red for microplastic identification. This method was then applied to real freshwater samples and identified particles were validated with micro-FTIR or Raman spectroscopy. This approach may reduce subjectivity in microplastic identification and counting and enhances transparency, repeatability and harmonization within microplastic research community.• Instructions for calibration of detection limits for microplastics on fluorescence microscope systems described•Microplastic identification key developed and tested to reduce false positive detection•Lower subjectivity for microplastic identification obtained using the detection limits & identification ke

Snapshot Sampling May Not Be Enough to Obtain Robust Estimates for Riverine Microplastic Loads

Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) have been described as key contributors of microplastics (MPs) to aquatic systems, yet temporal fluctuations in MP concentrations and loads downstream are underexplored. This study investigated how different sampling frequencies (hourly, weekly, and monthly) affect MP estimates in a stream linked to a single WWTP. Utilizing fluorescence microscopy and Raman spectroscopy, considerable hourly variations in MP concentrations were discovered, while the polymer composition remained consistent. This temporal variability in MP loads was influenced by MP concentration, discharge rates, or a mix of both. These results show a high uncertainty, as relying on sparse snapshot samples combined with annual discharge data led to significant uncertainties in MP load estimates (over- and/or underestimation of emissions by 3.8 billion MPs annually at this site). Our findings stress the necessity of higher-frequency sampling for better comprehending the hydrodynamic factors influencing MP transport. This improved understanding enables a more accurate quantification of MP dynamics, crucial for downstream impact assessments. Therefore, preliminary reconnaissance campaigns are essential for designing extended, representative site-monitoring programs and ensuring more precise trend predictions on a larger scale.</p

Transport and deposition of ocean-sourced microplastic particles by a North Atlantic hurricane

The atmosphere can transport large quantities of microplastics and disperse them throughout the globe to locations inaccessible by many other transport mechanisms. Meteorological events have been proven to pick up and transport particulate matter, however, how they influence the transport and deposition of atmospheric microplastics is still poorly understood. Here we present samples of atmospheric fallout collected during Hurricane Larry as it passed over Newfoundland, Canada in September 2021. During the storm peak, 1.13 × 105 particles m−2 day−1 were deposited, with a decline in deposition after the storm passed. Back-trajectory modelling and polymer type analysis indicate that those microplastics may have been ocean-sourced as the hurricane traversed the garbage patch of the North Atlantic Gyre. This study identifies the influence of North Atlantic hurricanes on the atmospheric transport and deposition of ocean-sourced microplastics and the possible consequences of increased exposure to microplastics in remote areas

Microplastic accumulation in endorheic river basins: – The example of the Okavango Panhandle (Botswana)

The Okavango Panhandle is themain influent watercourse of the Okavango Delta, an inland sink of the entire sediment load of the Cubango-Okavango River Basin (CORB). The sources of pollution in the CORB, and other endorheic basins, are largely understudied when compared to exorheic systems and the world's oceans. We present the first study of the distribution of microplastic (MP) pollution in surface sediments of the Okavango Panhandle in Northern Botswana. MP concentrations (64 μm-5 mm size range) in sediment samples from the Panhandle range between 56.7 and 399.5 particles kg−1 (dry weight) when analysed with fluorescence microscopy. The concentrations ofMP in the 20 μm to 5mm grain size range (analysed with Raman spectroscopy) range between 1075.7 and 1756.3 particles kg−1. One shallow core (15 cm long) from an oxbow lake suggests that MP size decreases with depth while MP concentration increases downcore. Raman Spectroscopy revealed that the compositions of the MP are dominated by polyethene terephthalate (PET), polypropylene (PP), polyethene (PE), polystyrene (PS), and polyvinyl chloride (PVC). Fromthis novel data set it was possible to estimate that 10.9–336.2 billion particles could be transported into the Okavango Delta annually, indicating that the region represents a significant sink for MP, raising concerns for the unique wetland ecosystem

Characterization of time-resolved laser differential phase using 3D complementary cumulative distribution functions

An experimental method for characterizing the time-resolved phase noise of a fast switching tunable laser is discussed. The method experimentally determines a complementary cumulative distribution function of the laser's differential phase as a function of time after a switching event. A time resolved bit error rate of differential quadrature phase shift keying formatted data, calculated using the phase noise measurements, was fitted to an experimental time-resolved bit error rate measurement using a field programmable gate array, finding a good agreement between the time-resolved bit error rates