995 research outputs found
Machinery for the Adjustment of Disputes Under New Collective Agreements
Avhandlingen bestĂ„r av tre empiriska studier som undersöker effekten av socialt kapital för individernas arbetsmarknadsutfall, utifrĂ„n tvĂ„ huvudsakliga frĂ„gestĂ€llningar. För det första: Vilka individuella egenskaper, sĂ„som utbildningsnivĂ„, genus och ursprungsland, underlĂ€ttar eller försvĂ„rar tillgĂ„ng till socialt kapital? HĂ€r studeras den avkastning som socialt kapital genererar pĂ„ arbetsmarknaden, jĂ€mfört med utbildning och arbetslivserfarenhet. För det andra analyseras vilken betydelse en stigmatiserad social identitet hos vissa invandrade har för tillgĂ„ngen till socialt kapital och i vilken grad ett âunderskottâ av socialt kapital pĂ„verkar deras arbetsmarknadsutfall. Resultatet av de empiriska undersökningarna tyder pĂ„ att invandrare och deras barn, efter kontroll för produktionsrelaterade variabler, har mindre tillgĂ„ng till socialt kapital och dĂ€rför sĂ€mre arbetsmarknadsutfall.This thesis consists of an introduction and three self-contained studies on the impact of social capital on individualsâ labour market outcomes. It focuses on labour market conditions for immigrants and their children in Sweden. The central research questions of the thesis are twofold. First, what individual characteristics, such as educational level, gender and country of origin, enhance or hinder access to social capital, and how well is social capital rewarded in the labour market compared with education and work experience? Second, does the stigmatized social identity of some immigrant groups affect their access to social capital, and to what degree does such a social capital âdeficitâ affect their labour market outcomes? The results demonstrate that inequality between immigrants (and their children) and natives (and their children) in access to networks with valuable resources of social capital is an important issue in their labour market outcomes
Extending electron orbital precession to the molecular case: Can orbital alignment be used to observe wavepacket dynamics?
The complexity of ultrafast molecular photoionization presents an obstacle to
the modelling of pump-probe experiments. Here, a simple optimized model of
atomic rubidium is combined with a molecular dynamics model to predict
quantitatively the results of a pump-probe experiment in which long range
rubidium dimers are first excited, then ionized after a variable delay. The
method is illustrated by the outline of two proposed feasible experiments and
the calculation of their outcomes. Both of these proposals use Feshbach 87Rb2
molecules. We show that long-range molecular pump-probe experiments should
observe spin-orbit precession given a suitable pump-pulse, and that the
associated high-frequency beat signal in the ionization probability decays
after a few tens of picoseconds. If the molecule was to be excited to only a
single fine structure state state, then a low-frequency oscillation in the
internuclear separation would be detectable through the timedependent
ionization cross section, giving a mechanism that would enable observation of
coherent vibrational motion in this molecule.Comment: 9 pages, 10 figures, PRA submissio
Tracing the Evolution of American Health Care through Medicare
With President Obamaâs health care reform currently under intense partisan scrutiny in the United States, this article is an objective resource for understanding the ways in which Medicare has historically served as a weather vane for charting the changes to the American health care system. During its nearly fifty-year tenure as the standard for the provision of medical care in the U.S., Medicare has evolved in fits and spurts, with its core structure shifting over time as the result of each decadeâs economic and political climate. It is only by understanding these past revisions, both independently and in the context of the concurrent changes in other nations around the world, that we can fully comprehend the state of Americaâs health care system today, and make the necessary allowances to ensure that the nationâs health care will survive to provide for its constituents in the years to come
Plane of nutrition affects the phylogenetic diversity and relative abundance of transcriptionally active methanogens in the bovine rumen
peer-reviewedMethane generated during enteric fermentation in ruminant livestock species is a major contributor to global anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. A period of moderate feed restriction followed by ad libitum access to feed is widely applied in cattle management to exploit the animalâs compensatory growth potential and reduce feed costs. In the present study, we utilised microbial RNA from rumen digesta samples to assess the phylogenetic diversity of transcriptionally active methanogens from feed-restricted and non-restricted animals. To determine the contribution of different rumen methanogens to methanogenesis during dietary restriction of cattle, we conducted high-throughput mcrA cDNA amplicon sequencing on an Illumina MiSeq and analysed both the abundance and phylogenetic origin of different mcrA cDNA sequences. When compared to their unrestricted contemporaries, in feed-restricted animals, the methanogenic activity, based on mcrA transcript abundance, of Methanobrevibacter gottschalkii clade increased while the methanogenic activity of the Methanobrevibacter ruminantium clade and members of the Methanomassiliicoccaceae family decreased. This study shows that the quantity of feed consumed can evoke large effects on the composition of methanogenically active species in the rumen of cattle. These data potentially have major implications for targeted CH4 mitigation approaches such as anti-methanogen vaccines and/or tailored dietary management
Treatment of depression in low-level residential care facilities for the elderly
Background: The rate of recognition and treatment of depressed older people in nursing homes is low. Data from the low-level residential care population have not been reported. This study aimed to collect information about the treatment of depression among older persons living in low-level residential care (hostels).Method: The participants comprised 300 elderly residents from ten low-level residential care facilities from various suburbs in metropolitan Melbourne. The participants were interviewed by a trained clinical psychologist to determine the presence or absence of major or minor depressive disorder using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis I Disorder (SCID-I). Each participant was also administered the Standardized Mini-mental State Examination (SMMSE) to determine level of cognitive function. The clinical psychologist then reviewed all cases in consultation with a geropsychiatrist experienced in the diagnosis of depression among older people, prior to assigning a diagnosis of depression.Results: An important finding in this study was the low treatment for currently depressed residents, with less than half of those in the sample who were depressed receiving treatment. However, 61 of the 96 residents out of the sample of 300 who were on antidepressants were not currently depressed.Conclusion: There is an under recognition and under treatment of currently depressed older people in low-level residential care facilities (hostels) just as has been reported in studies in nursing homes. However, there are high numbers receiving antidepressants who are not currently depressed.<br /
A pump-probe study of the formation of rubidium molecules by ultrafast photoassociation of ultracold atoms
An experimental pump-probe study of the photoassociative creation of
translationally ultracold rubidium molecules is presented together with
numerical simulations of the process. The formation of loosely bound
excited-state dimers is observed as a first step towards a fully coherent
pump-dump approach to the stabilization of Rb into its lowest ground
vibrational states. The population that contributes to the pump-probe process
is characterized and found to be distinct from a background population of
pre-associated molecules.Comment: Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev. A (10 pages, 9 figures
The prevalence and recognition of major depression among low-level aged care residents with and without cognitive impairment
Previous research has demonstrated a high level of depression in nursing homes. The current study was designed to determine the prevalence of depression, using a structured diagnostic interview, among older people with and without mild-moderate cognitive impairment residing in low-level care facilities. The results demonstrated that, consistent with previous research in nursing homes, 16.9% of older people were diagnosed with major depressive disorder. Less than half of these cases had been detected or treated. Individuals with moderate cognitive impairment were more likely to be depressed, but cognitive impairment did not appear to act as a strong impediment to the detection of depression by general practitioners. A low awareness of their use of antidepressant medications was demonstrated among older people prescribed this treatment, including those with normal cognitive function. Reasons for the poor recognition of depression among older people are discussed
Effect of Dietary Restriction and Subsequent Re-Alimentation on the Transcriptional Profile of Bovine Skeletal Muscle
peer-reviewedCompensatory growth (CG), an accelerated growth phenomenon which occurs following a
period of dietary restriction is exploited worldwide in animal production systems as a method
to lower feed costs. However the molecular mechanisms regulated CG expression remain
to be elucidated fully. This study aimed to uncover the underlying biology regulating CG in
cattle, through an examination of skeletal muscle transcriptional profiles utilising next generation
mRNA sequencing technology. Twenty Holstein Friesian bulls were fed either a
restricted diet for 125 days, with a target growth rate of 0.6 kg/day (Period 1), following
which they were allowed feed ad libitum for a further 55 days (Period 2) or fed ad libitum for
the entirety of the trial. M. longissimus dorsi biopsies were harvested from all bulls on days
120 and 15 of periods 1 and 2 respectively and RNAseq analysis was performed. During realimentation
in Period 2, previously restricted animals displayed CG, growing at 1.8 times
the rate of the ad libitum control animals. Compensating animals were also more feed efficient
during re-alimentation and compensated for 48% of their previous dietary restriction.
1,430 and 940 genes were identified as significantly differentially expressed (Benjamini
Hochberg adjusted P < 0.1) in periods 1 and 2 respectively. Additionally, 2,237 genes were
differentially expressed in animals undergoing CG relative to dietary restriction. Dietary
restriction in Period 1 was associated with altered expression of genes involved in lipid
metabolism and energy production. CG expression in Period 2 occurred in association with
greater expression of genes involved in cellular function and organisation. This study highlights
some of the molecular mechanisms regulating CG in cattle. Differentially expressed
genes identified are potential candidate genes for the identification of biomarkers for CG
and feed efficiency, which may be incorporated into future breeding programme
Partitioning of evapotranspiration using a stable isotope technique in an arid and high temperature agricultural production system
Agricultural production in the hot and arid low desert systems of southern California relies heavily on irrigation. A better understanding of how much and to what extent irrigated water is transpired by crops relative to being lost through evaporation would improve the management of increasingly limited water resources. In this study, we examined the partitioning of evapotranspiration (ET) over a field of forage sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), which was under evaluation as a potential biofuel feedstock, based on isotope measurements of three irrigation cycles at the vegetative stage. This study employed customized transparent chambers coupled with a laser-based isotope analyzer to continuously measure near-surface variations in the stable isotopic composition of evaporation (E, ÎŽE), transpiration (T, ÎŽT) and ET (ÎŽET) to partition the total water flux. Due to the extreme heat and aridity, ÎŽE and ÎŽT were very similar, which makes this system highly unusual. Contrary to an expectation that the isotopic signatures of T, E, and ET would become increasingly enriched as soils became drier, our results showed an interesting pattern that ÎŽE, ÎŽT, and ÎŽET increased initially as soil water was depleted following irrigation, but decreased with further soil drying in mid to late irrigation cycle. These changes are likely caused by root water transport from deeper to shallower soil layers. Results indicate that about 46% of the irrigated water delivered to the crop was used as transpiration, with 54% lost as direct evaporation. This implies that 28 â 39% of the total source water was used by the crop, considering the typical 60 â 85% efficiency of flood irrigation. The stable isotope technique provided an effective means of determining surface partitioning of irrigation water in this unusually harsh production environment. The results suggest the potential to further minimize unproductive water losses in these production systems
- âŠ