Domestic thermal upgrades, community action and energy saving: a three-year experimental study of prosperous households

A three-year field experiment was conducted with 185 prosperous households to assess whether behavioural interventions by a community environmental group during and after thermal upgrades (cavity wall and/or loft insulation) can achieve reductions in households’ energy use, including reductions in direct and indirect rebound. The engineering interventions on the thermal efficiency of dwellings appear effective in reducing energy use in both treatment and control groups: a direct rebound effect is estimated to be at most 40 per cent from the engineering interventions. However, across a range of measures of energy use, we observe no significant effect of the community behavioural intervention across the total lifetime of the project. Qualitative data collected on similar community groups suggests substantial constraints on their capacity to realise reductions in energy use amongst households

Review of UK microgeneration. Part 1 : policy and behavioural aspects

A critical review of the literature relating to government policy and behavioural aspects relevant to the uptake and application of microgeneration in the UK is presented. Given the current policy context aspiring to zero-carbon new homes by 2016 and a variety of minimum standards and financial policy instruments supporting microgeneration in existing dwellings, it appears that this class of technologies could make a significant contribution to UK energy supply and low-carbon buildings in the future. Indeed, achievement of a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 80% (the UK government's 2050 target) for the residential sector may entail substantial deployment of microgeneration. Realisation of the large potential market for microgeneration relies on a variety of inter-related factors such as microeconomics, behavioural aspects, the structure of supporting policy instruments and well-informed technology development. This article explores these issues in terms of current and proposed policy instruments in the UK. Behavioural aspects associated with both initial uptake of the technology and after purchase are also considered

The significance of heat transport by shallow fluid flow at an active plate boundary: the Southern Alps, New Zealand

Fluid flow can influence fault behavior. Here we quantify the role of groundwater heat advection in establishing the thermal structure of the Alpine Fault, a major tectonic boundary in southern New Zealand that accommodates most of the motion between the Australian and Pacific Plates. Convergence on the Alpine Fault has rapidly uplifted the Southern Alps, resulting in high geothermal gradients and a thin seismogenic zone. A new equilibrium temperature profile from the 818-m-deep Deep Fault Drilling Project 2B borehole has been interrogated using one-dimensional analytical models of fluid and rock advection. Models indicate a total heat flux of 720-mW m2 results from groundwater flow with Darcy velocities approximating to 7.8 × 1010 m s1. Groundwaters advect significantly more heat than rock advection in the shallow orogen (<6-km depth) and are the major control on the subsurface temperature field

A 16-year Longitudinal Cohort Study of Incidence and Bacteriology of Necrotising Fasciitis in England

BACKGROUND: Necrotising fasciitis (NF) is a rapidly progressive, destructive soft tissue infection with high mortality. The primary aim of this study was to evaluate the incidence and mortality of NF amongst patients admitted to English National Health Service (NHS) hospitals. The secondary aims included the identification of risk factors for mortality and causative pathogens. METHODS: The Hospital Episodes Statistics database identified patients with NF admitted to English NHS Trusts from 1/1/2002 to 31/12/2017. Information on patient demographics, co-morbid conditions, microbiology specimens, surgical intervention and in-hospital mortality was collected. Uni- and multivariable analyses were performed to investigate factors related to in-hospital mortality. RESULTS: A total of 11,042 patients were diagnosed with NF. Age-standardised incidence rose from 9 per million in 2002 to 21 per million in 2017 (annual percentage change = 6.9%). Incidence increased with age and was higher in men. Age-standardised mortality rate remained at 16% over the study period, while in-hospital mortality declined. On multivariable analysis, the following factors were associated with increased risk of in-hospital mortality: emergency admission, female sex, history of congestive heart failure, peripheral vascular disease, chronic kidney disease and cancer. Admission year and diabetes, which was significantly prevalent at 27%, were not associated with increased risk of mortality. Gram-positive pathogens, particularly Staphylococci, decreased over the study period with a corresponding increase in Gram-negative pathogens, predominantly E. coli. CONCLUSION: The incidence of NF increased markedly from 2002 to 2017 although in-hospital mortality did not change. There was a gradual shift in the causative organisms from Gram-positive to Gram-negative

An evaluation of the stimulants and impediments to innovation within PFI/PPP projects

This paper identifies the theoretical stimulants and impediments associated with the implementation of PFI/PPP (Private Finance Initiative/Public Private Partnership) projects. A current defect of this procurement approach is the unintentional constraint upon the innovations incorporated into the development of PFI projects. A critical evaluation of the published literature has been utilized to synthesize a theoretical model. The paper proposes a theoretical model for the identification of potential innovation stimulants and impediments within this type of procurement. This theoretical model is then utilised to evaluate four previously completed PFI projects. These project case-studies have been examined in detail. The evaluation demonstrates how ineffective current procedures are. The application of this model before project letting could eliminate unintentional constraints and stimulate improved innovation within the process. The implementation of the model could improve the successful delivery of innovation within the entire PFI/PPP procurement process

HIV-1 subtype C Envelope function becomes less sensitive to N-glycosylation deletion during disease progression

Objective As part of a larger study to understand how Envelope N-glycosylation influences HIV-1 pathogenesis, we selected a participant infected with a single Subtype C variant and determined whether deletion of specific potential N-glycan sites (PNGs) impacted Envelope function longitudinally. Results We deleted five PNGs previously linked to HIV-1 transmission of two matched Envelope clones representing variants at 5 and 173 weeks post-infection. The transmitted founder (TF) had significantly better pseudovirus entry efficiency than the chronic infection (CI) variant. Deletion of all PNGs significantly reduced TF entry efficiency, binding to dendritic cell-specific intracellular adhesion molecule 3 grabbing non-integrin (DC-SIGN) receptor and trans-infection. However, mutational analysis did not affect the phenotype of the CI Envelope to the same extent. Notably, deletion of the PNGs at N241 and N448 had no effect on CI Envelope function, suggesting that some PNGs might only be important during acute infection. Therefore, vaccines that elicit antibodies against N-glycans important for TF Envelope function could drive the loss of PNGs during immune escape, abrogating viral replication. Conversely, changes in N-glycosylation might have no effect on some variants, reducing vaccine efficacy. This finding highlights the need for further investigation into the role of Envelope N-glycosylation in HIV-1 pathogenesis

Innovator resilience potential: A process perspective of individual resilience as influenced by innovation project termination

Innovation projects fail at an astonishing rate. Yet, the negative effects of innovation project failures on the team members of these projects have been largely neglected in research streams that deal with innovation project failures. After such setbacks, it is vital to maintain or even strengthen project members’ innovative capabilities for subsequent innovation projects. For this, the concept of resilience, i.e. project members’ potential to positively adjust (or even grow) after a setback such as an innovation project failure, is fundamental. We develop the second-order construct of innovator resilience potential, which consists of six components – self-efficacy, outcome expectancy, optimism, hope, self-esteem, and risk propensity – that are important for project members’ potential of innovative functioning in innovation projects subsequent to a failure. We illustrate our theoretical findings by means of a qualitative study of a terminated large-scale innovation project, and derive implications for research and management

Gaps in detailed knowledge of human papillomavirus (HPV) and the HPV vaccine among medical students in Scotland

&lt;p&gt;Background: A vaccination programme targeted against human papillomavirus (HPV) types16 and 18 was introduced in the UK in 2008, with the aim of decreasing incidence of cervical disease. Vaccine roll out to 12–13 year old girls with a catch-up programme for girls aged up to 17 years and 364 days was accompanied by a very comprehensive public health information (PHI) campaign which described the role of HPV in the development of cervical cancer.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;Methods: A brief questionnaire, designed to assess acquisition of knowledge of HPV infection and its association to cervical cancer, was administered to two different cohorts of male and female 1st year medical students (school leavers: 83% in age range 17–20) at a UK university. The study was timed so that the first survey in 2008 immediately followed a summer's intensive PHI campaign and very shortly after vaccine roll-out (150 students). The second survey was exactly one year later over which time there was a sustained PHI campaign (213 students).&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;Results: We addressed three research questions: knowledge about three specific details of HPV infection that could be acquired from PHI, whether length of the PHI campaign and/or vaccination of females had any bearing on HPV knowledge, and knowledge differences between men and women regarding HPV. No female student in the 2008 cohort had completed the three-dose vaccine schedule compared to 58.4% of female students in 2009. Overall, participants’ knowledge regarding the sexually transmitted nature of HPV and its association with cervical cancer was high in both year groups. However, in both years, less than 50% of students correctly identified that HPV causes over 90% of cases of cervical cancer. Males gave fewer correct answers for these two details in 2009. In 2008 only around 50% of students recognised that the current vaccine protects against a limited subset of cervical cancer-causing HPV sub-types, although there was a significant increase in correct response among female students in the 2009 cohort compared to the 2008 cohort.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;onclusions: This study highlights a lack of understanding regarding the extent of protection against cervical cancer conferred by the HPV vaccine, even among an educated population in the UK who could have a vested interest in acquiring such knowledge. The intensive PHI campaign accompanying the first year of HPV vaccination seemed to have little effect on knowledge over time. This is one of the first studies to assess detailed knowledge of HPV in both males and females. There is scope for continued improvements to PHI regarding the link between HPV infection and cervical cancer.&lt;/p&gt