Pilot phase trial to quantify the extent and relevance of any deepwater puerulus settlement that may have taken place in the Western Rocklobster Fishery

This study had two objectives. Firstly to trial modifications to commercial western rock lobster pots, so as to sample as wide a size range of lobsters on the grounds as possible. Sampling took place over a 10 day period between 13-24 September 2009, with seven commercial fishermen being responsible for collection of the data at different sampling locations (Mandurah, Fremantle, Lancelin, Dongara, Geraldton, Abrolhos and Kalbarri). This arrangement proved to be successful in that a wide area of the coast was covered by the sampling regime and good quality catch composition data was achieved across the four depth zones (0-10 fm, 10-20 fm, 20-30 fm and >30 fm) that were sampled. The different pot modifications that were trialled sampled a wide size range (25-144 mm CL), but mostly caught lobsters around the legal size limit (modal size, 80 mm CL). In three of the four areas where more than one pot type was used, there were significant differences (p<0.01) in the catch rates of one or more size classes between the various pot types.The second objective was to establish whether there has been a shift in post-puerulus settlement from shallow to deeper waters. Analysis showed that depth was highly significant (p<0.05) in determining the catch rates of most size classes (≤50 mm CL; 51-65 mm CL; 66-76 mm CL; 77-105 mm CL and ≥105 mm CL). Generally, small size classes were sampled in the shallow depth categories and larger lobsters were sampled in the deeper depth categories, which would suggest that as in the past, recent puerulus settlement has been in shallow depths. Accordingly, it would seem reasonable to conclude that it is unlikely that there has been a major shift in the depths at which pueruli are settling. However, small lobsters were sampled in low numbers in the deep water categories in this survey and this therefore does not exclude the possibility that deep water settlement may be becoming more common than in past.In terms of recommendations, more monitoring of post-puerulus/juvenile lobsters using modified commercial pots similar to those used in this study has the potential to provide inter-annual comparisons of the numbers of small size classes settling at different depths on the grounds. It is only with more data of this type over a longer time period, that it will be possible to show whether there is any indirect evidence of a shift in settlement to deeper water. Should this work continue into the future, it would be beneficial to standardize on a consistent type of modification to the commercial pots so that more reliable comparisons of the relative numbers of juvenile animals can be made between areas

3D integrated superconducting qubits

As the field of superconducting quantum computing advances from the few-qubit stage to larger-scale processors, qubit addressability and extensibility will necessitate the use of 3D integration and packaging. While 3D integration is well-developed for commercial electronics, relatively little work has been performed to determine its compatibility with high-coherence solid-state qubits. Of particular concern, qubit coherence times can be suppressed by the requisite processing steps and close proximity of another chip. In this work, we use a flip-chip process to bond a chip with superconducting flux qubits to another chip containing structures for qubit readout and control. We demonstrate that high qubit coherence ($T_1$, $T_{2,\rm{echo}} > 20\,\mu$s) is maintained in a flip-chip geometry in the presence of galvanic, capacitive, and inductive coupling between the chips

A feasibility study of behavioural activation for depressive symptoms in adults with intellectual disabilities

Background: Important work has been carried out adapting cognitive behavioural therapy for people with intellectual disabilities. However, there is a lack of alternative psychological therapies available for people with intellectual disabilities and emotional difficulties. Behavioural activation for depression is less reliant on verbal communication and focuses on increasing purposeful activity and reducing avoidance. Method: This feasibility study involved the development and piloting of an adapted manual of behavioural activation for people with intellectual disabilities. The intervention consisted of 10–12 sessions and a key adaptation was that the therapist worked with the clients alongside a significant other in their life, either a paid carer or family member. Baseline, post-intervention (3 months after entering the study) and 6-month quantitative follow-up data were obtained. Primary outcome data were gathered, concerning depressive symptoms, participants' levels of activity and general well-being. Results: Twenty-three adults with intellectual disabilities with symptoms of depression were recruited from specialist health services. In terms of acceptability, the behavioural activation intervention was well received and only two individuals dropped out, with a further two lost to follow-up. The main measures of depression appeared to be sensitive to change. Pre- to post-intervention data showed a significant reduction in self-report of depressive symptoms with a strong effect size (r = 0.78), that was maintained at follow-up (r = 0.86). Positive change was also obtained for informant reports of depressive symptoms from pre- to post-intervention, with a strong effect size (r = 0.7). Once again, this positive change was maintained at follow-up (r = 0.72). Conclusions: The study suggested that behavioural activation may be a feasible and worthwhile approach to tackling depression in people with intellectual disabilities. However, a randomised controlled trial would be required to establish its effectiveness, with more sensitive measurement of change in activity

Engineering Comes Home: Co-designing nexus infrastructure from the bottom-up

The ‘nexus’ between water, food and energy systems is well established. It is conventionally analysed as a supply-side problem of infrastructure interdependencies, overlooking demand-side interactions and opportunities. The home is one of the most significant sites of nexus interactions and opportunities for redesigning technologies and infrastructure. New developments in ‘smart city’ technologies have the potential to support a bottom-up approach to designing and managing nexus infrastructure. The Engineering Comes Home was a research project that turned infrastructure design on its head. The objectives of the project were to: Demonstrate a new paradigm for engineering design starting from the viewpoint of the home, looking out towards systems of provision to meet household demands. Integrate thinking about water, energy, food, waste and data at the domestic scale to support userled innovation and co-design of technologies and infrastructure. Test new design methods that connect homes to communities, technologies and infrastructure, enhancing positive interactions between data, water, energy, food and waste systems. Develop a robust Lifecycle Assessment (LCA) Calculator tool to support environmental decisionmaking in co-design. Working with residents of the Meakin Estate in South London, the project followed a co-design method to identify requirements, analyse options and develop and test a detailed design for a preferred option. The outputs were: 1) Ethnographic study of how residents use water, energy and food resources in their homes and key opportunities for engineering design to improve wellbeing and reduce resource consumption. 2) Co-design of decentralised infrastructural systems in three workshops in 2016-2017. The first workshop identified key priorities for development from the community using a novel token-based system design method, to enable participants to build up alternative designs for local provision of water, energy, food and waste services. The second workshop provided participants with factsheets and photographs of the candidate technologies, which were then analysed using a LCA Calculator tool. 47 Rainwater harvesting was selected as the technology for further co-design in the third workshop, which focussed on scaling up a pilot installation. 3) Pilot-scale smart rainwater system was installed in partnership with the Over The Air Analytics (OTA). OTA’s system enables remote control of the rainwater storage tanks to optimise their performance as stormwater attenuation as well as non-potable water supply. 4) Lifecycle Assessment (LCA) Calculator to enable quick estimation of the impacts of new systems and technology to deliver water, energy and food, and manage waste at the household and neighbourhood scale. 5) Stakeholders, including utilities, design consultancies and community based organisations, were engaged in three workshops to inform the wider relevance and development of the co-design methods and tools. 6) Toolbox and method statements to standardise and disseminate the methods used in the project for wider application and development

Fermi Surface as the Driving Mechanism for Helical Antiferromagnetic Ordering in Gd-Y Alloys

The first direct experimental evidence for the Fermi surface (FS) driving the helical antiferromagnetic ordering in a gadolinium-yttrium alloy is reported. The presence of a FS sheet capable of nesting is revealed, and the nesting vector associated with the sheet is found to be in excellent agreement with the periodicity of the helical ordering.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure

Sentinel chicken surveillance programme In Australia, 1 July 2001 to 30 June 2002

Detection of flavivirus seroconversions in sentinel chicken flocks located throughout Australia is used to provide an early warning of increased levels of Murray Valley encephalitis (MVE) and Kunjin (KUN) virus activity in the region. During the 2002-2003 season low levels of flavivirus activity were detected in northern Australia compared to previous years. MVE and KUN virus activity was detected in the Kimberley and Pilbara regions of Western Australia and the Northern Territory but not in north Queensland, New South Wales or Victoria. This is similar to the previous season. There were no reported cases of diseas disease caused by either virus reported

Phenotypic and genotypic analysis of benzimidazole resistance in reciprocal genetic crosses of Haemonchus contortus

Haemonchus contortus is arguably one of the most economically important and ubiquitous parasites of livestock globally and commonly involved in cases of anthelmintic resistance. Here, we performed reciprocal genetic crosses using susceptible (MHco3(ISE)) and multiple anthelmintic resistant (MHco18(UGA2004)) H. contortus isolates. Resultant admixed populations were designated MHco3/18 or MHco18/3, where the lead isolate reflects the origin of the females. Three independent filial generations were generated for each cross, which were subjected to bioassays, molecular approaches and population genetic analyses to investigate the phenotypic and genotypic inheritance of benzimidazole (BZ) resistance at each stage. A panel of microsatellite markers confirmed the success of the genetic cross as markers from both parents were seen in the F(1) crosses. Egg hatch tests revealed a stark difference between the two F(1) crosses with ED(50) estimates for MHco18/3 being 9 times greater than those for MHco3/18. Resistance factors based on ED(50) estimates ranged from 6 to 57 fold in the filial progeny compared to MHco3(ISE) parents. Molecular analysis of the F167Y and F200Y SNP markers associated with BZ resistance were analysed by pyrosequencing and MiSeq deep amplicon sequencing, which showed that MHco3/18.F(1) and MHco18/3.F(1) both had similar frequencies of the F200Y resistant allele (45.3% and 44.3%, respectively), whereas for F167Y, MHco18/3.F(1) had a two-fold greater frequency of the resistant-allele compared to MHco3/18.F(1) (18.2% and 8.8%, respectively). Comparison between pyrosequencing and MiSeq amplicon sequencing revealed that the allele frequencies derived from both methods were concordant at codon 200 (r(c) = 0.97), but were less comparable for codon 167 (r(c) = 0.55). The use of controlled reciprocal genetic crosses have revealed a potential difference in BZ resistance phenotype dependent on whether the resistant allele is paternally or maternally inherited. These findings provide new insight and prompt further investigation into the inheritance of BZ resistance in H. contortus

Effect of pre-treatment on anaerobic biodegradability of Gracilaria verrucosa

Abstract: In global world, increasing needs of energy is parallel to the increase of population. The limitation of land availability and change of land use has turning the focus into marine biomass, especially macroalgae, as renewable energy feedstocks. Indonesia is one of the biggest countries producing marine macroalgae. The aim of this research was to evaluate the impact of washing pre-treatment on the characteristics of macroalgae and its biodegradability in anaerobic digestion process. In this study, a biochemical methane potential (BMP) test was carried out using fresh macroalgae, specifically Gracilaria verrucosa. The ratio of inoculum to substrate was 6:1 with operation temperature of 37 °C and incubated for 28 days. Prior the BMP test, the G. verrucosa samples were washed with flowing water for 10 minutes. The findings confirmed for washing pre-treatment was significantly enhance cumulative biogas and methane production by more than 50%. The specific methane potential (SMP) of washed G. verrucosa increased by six-fold, with the value of 0.108 m3 CH4 / kg VS. In this case, reduction of salinity concentration after washing may play an important role in increasing the anaerobic degradability. It was estimated that a high electricity potential is generated from anaerobic digestion of G. verrucosa after washing pre-treatment