Automatisch wegen van vleesvarkens in het hok

Het lichaamsgewicht van vleesvarkens wordt vaak geschat op basis van het aantal dagen dat de vleesvarkens in het hok liggen en de ervaring van de varkenshouder. Het regelmatig wegen van vleesvarkens tijdens de mestperiode is arbeidsintensief. Met behulp van een voorhandweegsysteem in het hok kan het individuele lichaamsgewicht van vleesvarkens automatisch worden bepaald

Handheld-computers

Het Proefstation voor de Varkenshouderij onderzoekt de meerwaarde van 'handheld'-computers (handcomputers) voor de registratie van ziekten en behandelingen ten opzichte van de schriftelijke registratie

Initiation of student participation in practice:An audio diary study of international clinical placements

Background: Differences in professional practice might hinder initiation of student participation during international placements, and thereby limit workplace learning. This study explores how healthcare students overcome differences in professional practice during initiation of international placements. Methods: Twelve first-year physiotherapy students recorded individual audio diaries during the first month of international clinical placement. Recordings were transcribed, anonymized, and analyzed following a template analysis approach. Team discussions focused on thematic interpretation of results. Results: Students described tackling differences in professional practice via ongoing negotiations of practice between them, local professionals, and peers. Three themes were identified as the focus of students’ orientation and adjustment efforts: professional practice, educational context, and individual approaches to learning. Healthcare students’ initiation during international placements involved a cyclical process of orientation and adjustment, supported by active participation, professional dialogue, and self-regulated learning strategies. Conclusions: Initiation of student participation during international placements can be supported by establishing a continuous dialogue between student and healthcare professionals. This dialogue helps align mutual expectations regarding scope of practice, and increase understanding of professional and educational practices. Better understanding, in turn, creates trust and favors meaningful students’ contribution to practice and patient care

On the combustion of fine iron particles beyond FeO stoichiometry: Insights gained from molecular dynamics simulations

Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations are performed to investigate the thermal and mass accommodation coefficients (TAC and MAC, respectively) for the combination of iron(-oxide) and air. The obtained values of TAC and MAC are then used in a point-particle Knudsen model to investigate the effect on the combustion behavior of (fine) iron particles. The thermal accommodation for the interactions of $\mathrm{Fe}$ with $\mathrm{N_2}$ and $\mathrm{Fe_xO_y}$ with $\mathrm{O_2}$ is investigated for different surface temperature, while the mass accommodation coefficient for iron(-oxide) with oxygen is investigated for different initial oxidation stages $Z_\mathrm{O}$, which represents the molar ratio of $\mathrm{O}/\left(\mathrm{O} + \mathrm{Fe}\right)$, and different surface temperatures. The MAC decreases almost linearly as a function of $Z_\mathrm{O}$, with a steeper slope when $Z_\mathrm{O} < 0.5$ and a gentler slope when $0.5 < Z_\mathrm{O} < 0.57$. By incorporating the MD-informed accommodation coefficients into the single iron particle model, the oxidation beyond $Z_\mathrm{O} = 0.5$ (from stoichiometric $\mathrm{FeO}$ to $\mathrm{Fe_3O_4}$) is modeled. A new temperature evolution for single iron particles is observed compared to results obtained with previously developed continuum models. Specifically, results of the present simulations show that the oxidation process continues after the particle reaching the peak temperature, while previous models predicting a maximum temperature was attained when the particle is fully oxidized to $Z_\mathrm{O} = 0.5$. Since the rate of formation slows down as the MAC decreases with an increasing oxidation stage, the rate of heat loss exceeds the rate of heat release upon reaching the maximum temperature. Finally, the effect of transition-regime heat and mass transfer on the combustion behavior of fine iron particles is investigated and discussed

The sensitivity of laboratory tests assessing driving related skills to dose-related impairment of alcohol:A literature review

AbstractLaboratory tests assessing driving related skills can be useful as initial screening tools to assess potential drug induced impairment as part of a standardized behavioural assessment. Unfortunately, consensus about which laboratory tests should be included to reliably assess drug induced impairment has not yet been reached. The aim of the present review was to evaluate the sensitivity of laboratory tests to the dose dependent effects of alcohol, as a benchmark, on performance parameters. In total, 179 experimental studies were included. Results show that a cued go/no-go task and a divided attention test with primary tracking and secondary visual search were consistently sensitive to the impairing effects at medium and high blood alcohol concentrations. Driving performance assessed in a simulator was less sensitive to the effects of alcohol as compared to naturalistic, on-the-road driving. In conclusion, replicating results of several potentially useful tests and their predictive validity of actual driving impairment should deserve further research. In addition, driving simulators should be validated and compared head to head to naturalistic driving in order to increase construct validity

Rivastigmine but not vardenafil reverses cannabis-induced impairment of verbal memory in healthy humans

RATIONALE: One of the most often reported cognitive deficits of acute cannabis administration is an impaired recall of previously learned information. OBJECTIVE: The aim of the present study was to determine whether cannabis-induced memory impairment in humans is mediated via glutamatergic or cholinergic pathways. METHODS: Fifteen occasional cannabis users participated in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, six-way cross-over study. On separate test days, subjects received combinations of pretreatment (placebo, vardenafil 20 mg or rivastigmine 3 mg) and treatment (placebo or 1,376 mg cannabis/kg body weight). Cognitive tests were administered immediately after inhalation of treatment was finished and included measures of memory (visual verbal learning task, prospective memory test, Sternberg memory test), perceptual-motor control (critical tracking task), attention (divided attention task) and motor impulsivity (stop signal task). RESULTS: The results of this study demonstrate that subjects under the influence of cannabis were impaired in all memory tasks, in critical tracking, divided attention and the stop signal task. Pretreatment with rivastigmine attenuated the effect of cannabis on delayed recall and showed a trend towards significance on immediate recall. When cannabis was given in combination with vardenafil, there were no significant interaction effects in any of the tasks. CONCLUSIONS: The present data therefore suggest that acetylcholine plays an important role in cannabis-induced memory impairment, whereas similar results for glutamate have not been demonstrated in this study