Estimation of a risk profile to operatives and the public from motorway hard-shoulder incursions

This project focuses on the risk to the operatives and the public arising from hard-shoulder incursions on motorways, which are defined as the temporary violation of this lane by a vehicle travelling on the nearside lane. Even though interest has been raised around safety when stopping on the hard-shoulder, there is no significant research conducted to investigate and quantify this risk. In this EngD project, motorway hard-shoulder accidents were investigated individually from the main traffic lanes to explore the factors affecting their severity and likelihood and identify potential differences using discrete choice and time-series modelling techniques. Based on the safety triangle theory, it was assumed that eliminating the contributory factors for injury accidents would also minimise the risk of hard-shoulder incursions, which were used as a risk indicator. An observation-based survey was conducted to gain initial knowledge on the frequency of incursions within a motorway stretch and also basic conditions that may affect the severity as well. Further to the survey, in order to collect hard-shoulder incursion data automatically, potential vehicle detection solutions were investigated. A radar sensor-based system was identified as the most suitable for this purpose and was adapted to suit the project s requirements. The sensor was installed on a motorway site, following a series of requirements to ensure safe and effective deployment. The data collected from the radar sensor were processed to minimise the errors and then corresponded to the traffic related and environmental data available for the same period of time. Using the Generalised Linear Autoregressive Moving Average model, the final models developed provided the factors that mostly affect the occurrence of hard-shoulder incursions. The main factors are temperature, humidity, traffic composition and average speed on the main carriageway. Using these models it is possible to quantify the risk and forecast when this will be minimised at a particular motorway section at any time. The risk is estimated according to the explanatory variables proposed, by inputting the predictions of these conditions in the model. This model is a tool that may then allow the operatives to be deployed on the network in the safest manner, according to the levels of tolerable risk

Greece in limbo: Post-election 2015 scenarios. EPIN Commentary No. 22/ 21 January 2015

In the run-up to elections in Greece on January 25th, this EPIN commentary explores the likelihood and consequences of four potential post-election scenarios: 1. Syriza single-party majority government or Syriza-led coalition government with anti-austerity parties 2. Syriza-led coalition government with pro-austerity parties or Syriza minority government 3. New Democracy government or ND-led coalition government 4. No government is formed

Greece as an example of “post-politics” in the eurozone. EPIN Commentary No. 28/9 November 2015

The negotiations between Greece and the EU and IMF tested the unity, limits, stamina and financial interdependence of eurozone member states. Greece emerged wounded from the fray, but Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has established beyond doubt his dominance in Greek politics, in defiance of partisan competitors at home and his counterparts’ wishes in the rest of Europe. In this EPIN Commentary the authors argue that – beyond the political significance of SYRIZA’s third electoral victory in seven months – this vote of confidence brings certain characteristics of both Greek and EU politics into sharper relief. The high-risk political activism undertaken by Syriza’s leadership in the first half of 2015 has (re)opened the debate about what kind of EU we live in, and contributed to the creation of another type of discourse in Europe – one that has so far been the preserve of established elites

Reshaping politics of the left and centre in Greece after the 2014 EP election. EPIN Commentary No. 21/10 September 2014

The political landscape in Greece is confused and volatile at the moment; the right and extreme- right-wing parties are accorded a disproportionately large place in political debate, while the radical left-wing SYRIZA party is attempting to maintain a ‘leftist’ profile and demonstrate its capacity to govern through a strategy of image normalisation. These tensions make it very difficult for the Greek government to stick to the EU’s tough reform agenda. The governing coalition is trying to conceal the social effects of implementing structural policy reforms, even postponing some measures to avoid bearing their political cost. At the same time, it is adopting a very rushed, and thus quite worrying, attitude towards a fast-track growth agenda, without taking into consideration the conditions for sustainable economic development

The use of precision-cut lung slices for studying innate immunity to viral infections.

Precision-cut lung slices (PCLS) are a novel tool to study cells of the lower airways. As PCLS retain the integrity and architecture of the lung, they constitute a robust model for studying the cells of the lower respiratory tract. Use of PCLS for imaging has been previously documented; however, other applications and techniques can also be applied to PCLS to increase their use and therefore decrease the number of animals needed for each experiment. We present a detailed protocol for generating PCLS from the murine lung. We show that cultured PCLS remain viable up to at least 8 days of culture, that RNA can be isolated from the tissue, and that flow cytometry can be carried out on the cells obtained from the PCLS. Furthermore, we demonstrate that cytokines and chemokines can be detected in the culture supernatants of PCLS exposed to viruses. Overall, these protocols expand the use of PCLS, especially for infection studies. © 2022 The Authors. Current Protocols published by Wiley Periodicals LLC. Basic Protocol 1: Precision-cut lung slices (PCLS) Basic Protocol 2: PCLS culture and viability Basic Protocol 3: RNA isolation from PCLS, cDNA conversion, and RT-qPCR Basic Protocol 4: Staining of cells from PCLS for flow cytometry Basic Protocol 5: In vivo RSV administration and ex vivo PCLS RSV exposure

Self-conscious emotions in patients suffering from chronic musculoskeletal pain: a brief report.

OBJECTIVE: The role of self-conscious emotions (SCEs) including shame, guilt, humiliation and embarrassment are of increasing interest within health. Yet, little is known about SCEs in the experience of chronic pain. This study explored prevalence and experience of SCEs in chronic pain patients compared to controls and assessed the relationship between SCEs and disability in pain patients. DESIGN AND MEASURES: Questionnaire assessment comparing musculoskeletal pain patients (n=64) and pain-free control participants (n=63). Pain was assessed using the McGill Pain Questionnaire; disability, using the Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire; and six SCEs derived from three measures (i) Test of Self-Conscious Affect-3 yielding subscales of shame, guilt, externalisation and detachment (ii) The Brief Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale and (iii) The Pain Self-Perception Scale assessing mental defeat. RESULTS: Significantly greater levels of shame, guilt, fear of negative evaluation and mental defeat were observed in chronic pain patients compared to controls. In the pain group, SCE variables significantly predicted affective pain intensity; only mental defeat was significantly related to disability. CONCLUSION: Findings highlight the prevalence of negative SCEs and their importance in assessment and management of chronic pain. The role of mood in this relationship is yet to be explored

A time-series analysis of motorway collisions in England considering road infrastructure, socio-demographics, traffic and weather characteristics

Traffic injuries on motorways are a public health problem worldwide. Collisions on motorways represent a high injury rate in comparison to the entire national network. Furthermore, collisions that occur on the hard–shoulder are even more severe than those that happen on the main carriageway. The purpose of this paper is to explore motorway safety through the identification of patterns in the sequence of monthly hard–shoulder and main carriageway collisions separately over a long period of time (1993– 2011) by using reported collision data from British motorways. In order to examine the trends of hard– shoulder and motorway collisions over the same period, a Vector Autoregressive (VAR) model is developed; this allows the inclusion of two time-series in the same model and the examination of the effect of one series on the other and vice-versa. Exogenous variables are also added in order to explore the long-term factors that might affect the occurrence of collisions. The factors considered are related to the infrastructure (e.g. length of motorways), socio-demographics (e.g. percentage of young drivers), traffic (e.g. percentage of vehicle-miles travelled by Heavy Goods Vehicles) and weather (e.g. precipitation). The results suggest different patterns in the sequences in terms of the lingering effects of preceding observations for the two time-series. In terms of the significance of exogenous variables, it is suggested that main carriageway collision frequency is affected by weather conditions and the presence of Heavy Goods Vehicles, while hard–shoulder collisions are decreased by the presence of Motorway Service Areas, which allow a safe exit off the motorway to stop and rest in case of fatigue