FORTRAN programs for calculating lower ionosphere electron densities and collision frequencies from rocket data

FORTRAN programs for calculating lower ionosphere electron densities and collision frequencie

Exposed core microstructured optical fiber surface plasmon resonance biosensor

Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR) scattering offers significant advantages compared to traditional reflectivity measurements, essentially turning a non-radiative process into a radiative one. Recently, we have shown that SPR scattering can be used in an optical fiber, enabling higher signal to noise ratio, reduced dependence on the metallic thickness as well as the unique capability of multiplexed detection with a single fiber. Here we report a novel SPR scattering based sensor fabricated based on an exposed-core silica Microstructured Optical Fiber (MOF). This MOF presents a structure with a relatively small core (Ø = 10μm), exposed along the whole fiber length. This exposed core MOF allows for fabrication of SPR supporting metallic thin films directly onto the fiber core offering the new prospect of exploiting SPR in a waveguide structure that supports only a relatively small number of guided optical modes, with a structure that offers ease of fabrication and handling. A thin silver film of 50 nm thickness was deposited onto the fiber core by thermal evaporation. The significant surface roughness of the prepared metallic coatings facilitates strong scattering of the light wave coupled into the surface plasmon. Performance characteristics of the new exposed core fiber sensor were compared to those of a large bare core silica fiber (Ø = 140μm). Although sensitivity of both sensors was comparable (around 2500nm/RIU), full width at half maximum (FWHM) of the SPR peaks for the new exposed core fiber sensor decreased by a factor of 3 offering an significant enhancement in the detection limit of the new sensing platform in addition to the prospect of a sensor with a lower detection volume.Elizaveta Klantsataya, Alexandre François, Agnieszka Zuber, Valeria Torok, Roman Kostecki and Tanya M. Monr

‘Do i care?’ young adults' recalled experiences of early adolescent overweight and obesity: a qualitative study

<p>Objective: Individual behaviour change to reduce obesity requires awareness of, and concern about, weight. This paper therefore describes how young adults, known to have been overweight or obese during early adolescence, recalled early adolescent weight-related awareness and concerns. Associations between recalled concerns and weight-, health- and peer-related survey responses collected during adolescence are also examined.</p> <p>Design: Qualitative semi-structured interviews with young adults; data compared with responses to self-report questionnaires obtained in adolescence.</p> <p>Participants: A total of 35 participants, purposively sub-sampled at age 24 from a longitudinal study of a school year cohort, previously surveyed at ages 11, 13 and 15. Physical measures during previous surveys allowed identification of participants with a body mass index (BMI) indicative of overweight or obesity (based on British 1990 growth reference) during early adolescence. Overall, 26 had been obese, of whom 11 had BMI99.6th centile, whereas 9 had been overweight (BMI=95th–97.9th centile).</p> <p>Measures: Qualitative interview responses describing teenage life, with prompts for school-, social- and health-related concerns. Early adolescent self-report questionnaire data on weight-worries, self-esteem, friends and victimisation (closed questions).</p> <p>Results: Most, but not all recalled having been aware of their overweight. None referred to themselves as having been obese. None recalled weight-related health worries. Recollection of early adolescent obesity varied from major concerns impacting on much of an individual's life to almost no concern, with little relation to actual severity of overweight. Recalled concerns were not clearly patterned by gender, but young adult males recalling concerns had previously reported more worries about weight, lower self-esteem, fewer friends and more victimisation in early adolescence; no such pattern was seen among females. Conclusion: The popular image of the unhappy overweight teenager was not borne out. Many obese adolescents, although well aware of their overweight recalled neither major dissatisfaction nor concern. Weight-reduction behaviours are unlikely in such circumstances.</p&gt

Boronate probes for the detection of hydrogen peroxide release from human spermatozoa

Human spermatozoa are compromised by production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and detection of ROS in spermatozoa is important for the diagnosis of male infertility. Probes 2',7'-dichlorohydrofluorescein diacetate (DCFH), dihydroethidium (DHE) and MitoSOX red (MSR) are commonly used for detecting ROS by flow cytometry, however these probes lack sensitivity to hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), which is particularly damaging to mammalian sperm cells. This study reports the synthesis and use of three aryl boronate probes, peroxyfluor-1 (PF1), carboxy peroxyfluor-1 (CPF1) and a novel probe 2(2-ethoxyethoxy)ethoxy peroxyfluor-1 (EEPF1) in human spermatozoa. PF1 and EEPF1 were found to be effective in detecting H2O2 and peroxynitrite (ONOO(-)) produced by spermatozoa when stimulated with menadione or 4-hydroxynonenal. EEPF1 was more effective at detection of ROS in spermatozoa than DCFH, DHE and MSR; furthermore it distinguished poorly motile sperm as shown by greater ROS production. EEPF1 should therefore have a significant role in diagnosis of oxidative stress in male infertility, cryopreservation, age, lifestyle and exposure to environmental toxicants.Malcolm S. Purdey, Haley S. Connaughton, Sara Whiting, Erik P. Schartner, Tanya M. Monro, Jeremy G. Thompson, R. John Aitken, Andrew D. Abel

Considering Intra-individual Genetic Heterogeneity to Understand Biodiversity

In this chapter, I am concerned with the concept of Intra-individual Genetic Hetereogeneity (IGH) and its potential influence on biodiversity estimates. Definitions of biological individuality are often indirectly dependent on genetic sampling -and vice versa. Genetic sampling typically focuses on a particular locus or set of loci, found in the the mitochondrial, chloroplast or nuclear genome. If ecological function or evolutionary individuality can be defined on the level of multiple divergent genomes, as I shall argue is the case in IGH, our current genetic sampling strategies and analytic approaches may miss out on relevant biodiversity. Now that more and more examples of IGH are available, it is becoming possible to investigate the positive and negative effects of IGH on the functioning and evolution of multicellular individuals more systematically. I consider some examples and argue that studying diversity through the lens of IGH facilitates thinking not in terms of units, but in terms of interactions between biological entities. This, in turn, enables a fresh take on the ecological and evolutionary significance of biological diversity

Theorizing Masculinities in Contemporary Britain

This chapter examines two key issues about masculinities in contemporary Britain. First, we examine what the evidence says about the extent to which British masculinities are changing, and how this is manifest in contemporary society. Second, we explore how theoretical understandings of masculinities both shape one’s findings, and evolve in relation to a changing culture. We thus provide a partial history of masculinity theory and contextualise the chapters of this edited volume, in order to advance theoretical and empirical understanding of British masculinities. We argue that far from being a crisis of masculinities, the gendered changes in the social lives of British men are positive and to be welcomed

Taming the light in microstructured optical fibers for sensing

In this review, we examine recent developments in the field of chemical and biological sensing utilizing suspended-core, exposed-core, and hollow-core microstructured optical fibers. Depending on the intended application, a host of sensing modalities have been utilized including labelled fluorescence techniques, and label-free methods such as surface plasmon resonance, fiber Bragg gratings, and Raman scattering. The use of various functionalization techniques adds specificity to both chemical ions and biological molecules. The results shown here highlight some of the important benefits that arise with the use of microstructured optical fibers compared to traditional techniques, including small sample volumes, high sensitivity, and multiplexing.Erik P. Schartner, Georgios Tsiminis, Alexandre François, Roman Kostecki, Stephen C. Warren-Smith, Linh Viet Nguyen, Sabrina Heng, Tess Reynolds, Elizaveta Klantsataya, Kris J. Rowland, Andrew D. Abell, Heike Ebendorff-Heidepriem, Tanya M. Monr

Is bisexuality invisible? A review of sexualities scholarship 1970–2015

This article provides a review of sexualities scholarship within the social sciences between 1970 and 2015. It takes an innovative approach by focusing on the way in which bisexuality is addressed in this body of literature. The article reveals the marginalisation, under-representation and invisibility of bisexuality within and across the social sciences in relation to both bisexual experience and identity. Reasons for this varied across the different eras, including the heterosexist nature of the literature, the impact of gay and lesbian-focused identity politics, and queer deconstructionism. In addition, patterns of bisexual erasure and invisibility were uneven, with some scholarship taking inclusive approaches or criticising prejudice against bisexuality. The initial findings of the review were enriched by critical commentary from key relevant sociologists and political scientists. The article concludes that future sexualities scholarship could be enhanced by greater consideration of bisexuality

Examining the geometry, age and genesis of buried Quaternary valley systems in the Midland Valley of Scotland, UK

Buried palaeo‐valley systems have been identified widely beneath lowland parts of the UK including eastern England, central England, south Wales and the North Sea. In the Midland Valley of Scotland palaeo‐valleys have been identified yet the age and genesis of these enigmatic features remain poorly understood. This study utilizes a digital data set of over 100 000 boreholes that penetrate the full thickness of deposits in the Midland Valley of Scotland. It identified 18 buried palaeo‐valleys, which range from 4 to 36 km in length and 24 to 162 m in depth. Geometric analysis has revealed four distinct valley morphologies, which were formed by different subglacial and subaerial processes. Some palaeo‐valleys cross‐cut each other with the deepest features aligning east–west. These east–west features align with the reconstructed ice‐flow direction under maximum conditions of the Main Late Devensian glaciation. The shallower features appear more aligned to ice‐flow direction during ice‐sheet retreat, and were therefore probably incised under more restricted ice‐sheet configurations. The bedrock lithology influences and enhances the position and depth of palaeo‐valleys in this lowland glacial terrain. Faults have juxtaposed Palaeozoic sedimentary and igneous rocks and the deepest palaeo‐valleys occur immediately down‐ice of knick‐points in the more resistant igneous bedrock. The features are regularly reused and the fills are dominated by glacial fluvial and glacial marine deposits. This suggests that the majority of infilling of the features happened during deglaciation and may be unrelated to the processes that cut them