A natural laboratory for critical metals investigations in the Mourne Mountains granites

This is the final version. Available from the Royal Irish Academy via the DOI in this record.Certain metals that are vital for many modern technologies occur naturally in the Mourne Mountains Complex of County Down, Northern Ireland. These include niobium, tantalum and the rare earth elements. Using the Tellus geochemistry data and the results of more detailed sampling we have investigated their geological sources in granite bedrock and their dispersion in stream sediments. From this research, an exploration methodology has emerged that can assist in the search for critical metals globally. Planned follow-on studies include investigations of the environmental fate of these metals and the potentially toxic elements with which they are naturally associated.Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investmen

New concepts for small mining operations

This is the final version. Available on open access from Science Impact Ltd. via the DOI in this recordEuropean Commissio

Autosomal recessive myotonia congenita in sheep

International audienc

Systematic review of the behavioural assessment of pain in cats

Objectives The objectives were to review systematically the range of assessment tools used in cats to detect the behavioural expression of pain and the evidence of their quality; and to examine behavioural metrics (considering both the sensory and affective domains) used to assess pain. Methods A search of PubMed and ScienceDirect, alongside articles known to the authors, from 2000 onwards, for papers in English was performed. This was followed by a manual search of the references within the primary data sources. Only peer-reviewed publications that provided information on the assessment tool used to evaluate the behavioural expression of pain in cats, in conscious animals (not anaesthetised cats), were included. Results No previous systematic reviews were identified. One hundred papers were included in the final assessment. Studies were primarily related to the assessment of pain in relation to surgical procedures, and no clear distinction was made concerning the onset of acute and chronic pain. Ten broad types of instrument to assess pain were identified, and generally the quality of evidence to support the use of the various instruments was poor. Only one specific instrument (UNESP-Botucatu scale) had published evidence of validity, reliability and sensitivity at the level of a randomised control trial, but with a positive rather than placebo control, and limited to its use in the ovariohysterectomy situation. The metrics used within the tools appeared to focus primarily on the sensory aspect of pain, with no study clearly discriminating between the sensory and affective components of pain. Conclusions and relevance Further studies are required to provide a higher quality of evidence for methods used to assess pain in cats. Furthermore, a consistent definition for acute and chronic pain is needed. Tools need to be validated that can detect pain in a range of conditions and by different evaluators (veterinary surgeons and owners), which consider both the sensory and emotional aspects of pain

Emergent synergistic lysosomal toxicity of chemical mixtures in molluscan blood cells (hemocytes)

The problem of effective assessment of risk posed by complex mixtures of toxic chemicals in the environment is a major challenge for government regulators and industry. The biological effect of the individual contaminants, where these are known, can be measured; but the problem lies in relating toxicity to the multiple constituents of contaminant cocktails. The objective of this study was to test the hypothesis that diverse contaminant mixtures may cause a greater toxicity than the sum of their individual parts, due to synergistic interactions between contaminants with different intracellular targets. Lysosomal membrane stability in hemocytes from marine mussels was used for in vitro toxicity tests; and was coupled with analysis using the isobole method and a linear additive statistical model. The findings from both methods have shown significant emergent synergistic interactions between environmentally relevant chemicals (i.e., polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, pesticides, biocides and a surfactant) when exposed to isolated hemocytes as a mixture of 3 & 7 constituents. The results support the complexity-based hypothesis that emergent toxicity occurs with increasing contaminant diversity, and raises questions about the validity of estimating toxicity of contaminant mixtures based on the additive toxicity of single components. Further experimentation is required to investigate the potential for interactive effects in mixtures with more constituents (e.g., 50 –100) at more environmentally realistic concentrations in order to test other regions of the model, namely, very low concentrations and high diversity. Estimated toxicant diversity coupled with tests for lysosomal damage may provide a potential tool for determining the toxicity of estuarine sediments, dredge spoil or contaminated soil

Crystal-liquid segregation in silicocarbonatite magma leads to the formation of calcite carbonatite

This is the final version. Available on open access from Oxford University Press via the DOI in this recordA suite of silicocarbonatite and lamprophyre rocks from SW Ireland, with mantle affinity and primitive composition, are used as a proxy for parental carbonated silicate magmas to model early magmatic evolution. Reconstruction of volatile ratios is validated using global occurrences. At 1200°C, the point at which melts transition from ionic liquids with exceptionally low viscosity (0.06 PaS) to covalently polymerised liquid (viscosity up to 1.3 PaS) is 33 mol% SiO2. Incremental and significant increase in magma density accompanies magma ponding, due to dehydration of magmas from model molar CO2/(CO2 + H2O) of 0.60 in plutonic settings to 0.75 for initial subvolcanic magmas. Magma-crystal density differences dictate that repeated influxes of magmas into an inflating magma chamber sustain a mechanical boundary layer between dense (silicate and oxide) mineral layers and a calcite ± phlogopite flotation assemblage. The range of critical CO2 concentration at which calcite floats (10–13 wt% CO2) may be extended by the presence of additional volatiles and fluid bubbles. The model accommodates a range of phenomena observed or inferred for alkaline/carbonatite complexes, including the following: 1, a growing calcite-dominated flotation assemblage with an apparently early magmatic mineralisation; 2, a residual liquid with high concentrations of incompatible metals; 3, variable carbonatite–pyroxenite–phoscorite rock relations; and 4, multiple phases of overprinting metasomatism.European Union Horizon 202

Maturing the concept of small-scale mining (SSM) in the Global North using concept evaluation criteria on the placer mining industry in Yukon, Canada

This is the final version. Available on open access from Elsevier via the DOI in this recordData availability: My data is available upon request. The small community where the interviews are sourced makes anonymity difficult. Public disclosure of anonymized, randomized interview data is being considered.An empirical study of the placer gold mining industry in Yukon, Canada reveals how small-scale mining relates to large-scale and artisanal-scale mining, historically in the Global North and in the contemporary global context. This work significantly matures the concept of small-scale mining (SSM), despite its conflation with neighbouring concept ASM. Archival and ethnographic data gathered from the industry, community, and government informants (2021 and 2022) was interpreted using Concept Evaluation Criteria, which looks at definitions, characteristics, boundaries, and preconditions and outcomes. Legislation in Yukon does not specifically separate SSM from large-scale mining (LSM) by definition, however, it does offer differentiated governance according to deposit type (i.e., Placer Mining Act). A characteristic of SSM is full legalization and formalization, however, formalization is only possible if accessible legal frameworks exist (precondition). Formalization is possible through proactive governance, and industry-community-government dynamism. Market-protective legal frameworks effectively preclude SSM from participating in stock markets but small-enterprises use independent capital, or can access alternative sources of capital to evolve into medium-scale enterprises. The Yukon's slower, smaller mining industries have endured despite the co-existence of large-scale operations and they play an active role in modern wealth distributions, economic diversification, and sustained rural economies resilient to boom-bust economies. The implications of the research are considered in the context of diversification of mining and sociological solutions to diversify responsible access to ore deposits

Covering Problems for Partial Words and for Indeterminate Strings

We consider the problem of computing a shortest solid cover of an indeterminate string. An indeterminate string may contain non-solid symbols, each of which specifies a subset of the alphabet that could be present at the corresponding position. We also consider covering partial words, which are a special case of indeterminate strings where each non-solid symbol is a don't care symbol. We prove that indeterminate string covering problem and partial word covering problem are NP-complete for binary alphabet and show that both problems are fixed-parameter tractable with respect to $k$, the number of non-solid symbols. For the indeterminate string covering problem we obtain a $2^{O(k \log k)} + n k^{O(1)}$-time algorithm. For the partial word covering problem we obtain a $2^{O(\sqrt{k}\log k)} + nk^{O(1)}$-time algorithm. We prove that, unless the Exponential Time Hypothesis is false, no $2^{o(\sqrt{k})} n^{O(1)}$-time solution exists for either problem, which shows that our algorithm for this case is close to optimal. We also present an algorithm for both problems which is feasible in practice.Comment: full version (simplified and corrected); preliminary version appeared at ISAAC 2014; 14 pages, 4 figure

Peer-to-Peer Sharing of Social Media Messages on Sexual Health in a School-Based Intervention: Opportunities and Challenges Identified in the STASH Feasibility Trial

Background: There is a strong interest in the use of social media to spread positive sexual health messages through social networks of young people. However, research suggests that this potential may be limited by a reluctance to be visibly associated with sexual health content on the web or social media and by the lack of trust in the veracity of peer sources. Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate opportunities and challenges of using social media to facilitate peer-to-peer sharing of sexual health messages within the context of STASH (Sexually Transmitted Infections and Sexual Health), a secondary school-based and peer-led sexual health intervention. Methods: Following training, and as a part of their role, student-nominated peer supporters (aged 14-16 years) invited school friends to trainer-monitored, private Facebook groups. Peer supporters posted curated educational sex and relationship content within these groups. Data came from a feasibility study of the STASH intervention in 6 UK schools. To understand student experiences of the social media component, we used data from 11 semistructured paired and group interviews with peer supporters and their friends (collectively termed students; n=42, aged 14-16 years), a web-based postintervention questionnaire administered to peer supporters (n=88), and baseline and follow-up questionnaires administered to students in the intervention year group (n=680 and n=603, respectively). We carried out a thematic analysis of qualitative data and a descriptive analysis of quantitative data. Results: Message sharing by peer supporters was hindered by variable engagement with Facebook. The trainer-monitored and private Facebook groups were acceptable to student members (peer supporters and their friends) and reassuring to peer supporters but led to engagement that ran parallel to—rather than embedded in—their routine social media use. The offline context of a school-based intervention helped legitimate and augment Facebook posts; however, even where friends were receptive to STASH messages, they did not necessarily engage visibly on social media. Preferences for content design varied; however, humor, color, and text brevity were important. Preferences for social media versus offline message sharing varied. Conclusions: Invitation-only social media groups formed around peer supporters’ existing friendship networks hold potential for diffusing messages in peer-based sexual health interventions. Ideally, interactive opportunities should not be limited to single social media platforms and should run alongside offline conversations. There are tensions between offering young people autonomy to engage flexibly and authentically and the need for adult oversight of activities for information accuracy and safeguarding