Can crop science really help us to produce more better quality food while reducing the world-wide environmental footprint of agriculture?

This paper reviews recent developments in crop science that can be the basis of a revolution in the global food system but it is also emphasized that such a revolution requires more than changes in food production and supply. We must more effectively feed a growing global population with a healthy diet while also defining and delivering the kinds of sustainable food systems that will minimise damage to our planet. There are exciting new developments in crop production biology but much existing crop science can be exploited to increase yields with the aid of a knowledge exchange (KE) framework requiring the use of new technology now available to most people across the globe. We discuss novel approaches at both the plant and the crop level that will enhance nutrient and water productivity and we also outline ways in which energy use and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions can be reduced and labor shortages combatted. Exploitation of new biology and new engineering opportunities will require development of public-private partnerships and collaborations across the disciplines to allow us to move effectively from discovery science to practical application. It is also important that consumers contribute to the debate over proposed changes to food and farming and so effective KE mechanisms are required between all relevant communities

Mechanism for the formation of the high-altitude stagnant cusp: Cluster and SuperDARN observations

On 16 March 2002, Cluster moved from nightside to dayside, across the high-altitude northern cusp during an extended period of relatively steady positive IMF BY and BZ. Combined Cluster and SuperDARN data imply the existence of two reconnection sites: in the high- latitude northern hemisphere dusk and southern hemisphere dawn sectors. Within the cusp, Cluster encounters 3 distinct plasma regions. First, injections of magnetosheath-like plasma associated with dawnward and sunward convection suggest Cluster crosses newly- reconnected field lines related to the dusk reconnection site. Second, Cluster observes a Stagnant Exterior Cusp (SEC), characterized by nearly isotropic and stagnant plasma. Finally, Cluster crosses a region with significant antifield-aligned flows. We suggest the observed SEC may be located on newly re-closed field lines, reconnected first poleward of the northern hemisphere cusp and later reconnected again poleward of the southern hemisphere cusp. We discuss how the Cluster observations correspond to expectations of ’double reconnection’ model

A qualitative evaluation of a preceptorship programme to support newly qualified midwives

Background. Contemporary UK midwifery practice has its own particular pressures upon – and requirements of – newly qualified practitioners. The NMC recommends that the focus of pre-registration programmes of midwifery must be on the skills and attitudes needed to support and promote normal birth (NMC, 2007). In relation to the skills of caring for women at high risk of complications, the NMC states that ‘skills required for taking on the role of lead carer for women with complex medical and/or obstetric needs is developmental, and competence is to be achieved after initial registration’ (NMC, 2009: 19). It is therefore likely that the midwife, at the point of qualification, will not be fully conversant with the range of skills associated with the care of women with complex needs, and some structured programme is required (DH, 2008).Aim. A midwifery programme of preceptorship was implemented in 2004 in one NHS foundation trust in north-west England and a structured evaluation was undertaken, starting in June 2009, to identify strengths and weaknesses to further develop the programme.Method. Focus groups and interviews were used to collect data from one cohort of six newly qualified midwives (NQMs), six preceptors and four midwifery managers over an 18-month period from June 2009 to December 2010. Data were collected on participants’ perceptions of strengths and weaknesses in the programme with regard to curriculum content, support and professional development. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. Three overarching themes were identified from the data: developing competence and confidence, support, and organisational constraints. The head of midwifery gave permission for the study to be conducted and the proposal received ethical approval from the university ethics committee.Results. The structured preceptorship programme was viewed as helpful in developing the NQM’s confidence and competence. The relationships built up during this time were considered to be valuable and mutually beneficial. Organisational constraints at times made achieving the aims of the programme more difficult and necessitated a flexible, individualised approach. Implications. The evaluation supports the evidence for implementation of a personalised, structured, and equitable approach to UK midwifery preceptorship, accompanied by further research on its effects on the care of women and retention of staff

Total joint replacement in sub-Saharan Africa:a systematic review

Outcomes of arthroplasty in sub-Saharan Africa are not widely reported. To our knowledge, this systematic review is the first to explore this topic. Scopus, EMBASE, Medline and PubMed databases were searched, utilising MeSH headings and Boolean search strategies. All papers from South Africa were excluded. Twelve papers reporting 606 total hip replacements (THRs) and 763 total knee replacements (TKRs) were included. Avascular necrosis was the most common indication for THR, whereas osteoarthritis was the main indication for TKR. HIV prevalence of up to 33% was seen. Improvements were seen in patient-reported outcome measures in both THR and TKR. The dislocation rate in THR was 1.6%. The deep infection rate was 1.6% for TKRs and 0.5% for THRs. Positive results were reported, with comparable complications to high-income countries. However, there is likely to be significant reporting bias and the introduction of mandatory registries would enable more accurate monitoring across the region

Catch crop strategy and nitrate leaching following grazed grass-clover

Cultivation of grassland presents a high risk of nitrate leaching. This study aimed to determine if leaching could be reduced by growing spring barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) as a green crop for silage with undersown Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) compared with barley grown to maturity with or without an undersown conventional catch crop of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.). All treatments received 0,60 or 120 kg of ammonium-N ha-1 in cattle slurry. In spring 2003, two grass-clover fields (3 and 5 years old, respectively, with different management histories) were ploughed. The effects of the treatments on yield and nitrate leaching were determined in the first year, while the residual effects of the treatments were determined in the second year in a crop of spring barley⁄perennial ryegrass. Nitrate leaching was estimated in selected treatments using soil water samples from ceramic cups. The experiment showed that compared with treatments without catch crop, green barley⁄Italian ryegrass reduced leaching by 163–320 kg Nha-1, corresponding to 95–99%, and the perennial ryegrass reduced leaching to between 34 and 86 kg Nha-1, corresponding to a reduction of 80 and 66%. Also, in the second growing season, leaching following catchcrops was reduced compared with the bare soil treatment. It was concluded that the green barley⁄Italian ryegrass offers advantages not only for the environment but also for farmers, for whom it provides a fodder high in roughage and avoids the difficulties with clover fatigue increasingly experienced by Danish farmers

Fission widths of hot nuclei from Langevin dynamics

Fission dynamics of excited nuclei is studied in the framework of Langevin equation. The one body wall-and-window friction is used as the dissipative force in the Langevin equation. In addition to the usual wall formula friction, the chaos weighted wall formula developed earlier to account for nonintegrability of single-particle motion within the nuclear volume is also considered here. The fission rate calculated with the chaos weighted wall formula is found to be faster by about a factor of two than that obtained with the usual wall friction. The systematic dependence of fission width on temperature and spin of the fissioning nucleus is investigated and a simple parametric form of fission width is obtained.Comment: RevTex, 12 pages including 9 Postscript figure

Urban geology of Swansea: Neath : Port Talbot

The conurbation of Swansea–Neath–Port Talbot is one of the main centres of industrial development in South Wales. A long history of mineral extraction and processing, which stoked the initial growth of the towns, declined during the 20th Century. Many of these former industries have left a legacy of groundwater, watercourse and land contamination. A project funded by the Environment & Hazards Directorate (British Geological Survey) between 2000-2005 used available geological data to determine potential areas of contaminated land and understand the influence of the geology to pollutant pathways (Waters et al., In press a). The study covered 100 km2 of the Swansea- Neath-Port Talbot area (Fig. 2.1) and was aimed at providing data relevant to contaminated land issues, to augment the study by Arup (1997) on earth science information relevant to planning and development for the Swansea-Llanelli district, and look at new methodologies of presenting the data

Time-Dependent Hartree-Fock simulation of the expansion of abraded nuclei

A recent interpretation of the caloric curve based on the expansion of the abraded spectator nucleus is re-analysed in the framework of the Time-Dependent Hartree-Fock (TDHF) evolution. It is shown that the TDHF dynamics is more complex than a single monopolar collective motion at moderate energy. The inclusion of other important collective degrees of freedom may lead to the dynamical creation of hollow structure. Then, low density regions could be locally reached after a long time by the creation of these exotic density profiles. In particular the systematic of the minimum density reached during the expansion (the so-called turning points) appears to be different.Comment: 30 Latex pages including 9 figure

Prescission neutron multiplicity and fission probability from Langevin dynamics of nuclear fission

A theoretical model of one-body nuclear friction which was developed earlier, namely the chaos-weighted wall formula, is applied to a dynamical description of compound nuclear decay in the framework of the Langevin equation coupled with statistical evaporation of light particles and photons. We have used both the usual wall formula friction and its chaos-weighted version in the Langevin equation to calculate the fission probability and prescission neutron multiplicity for the compound nuclei $^{178}$W, $^{188}$Pt, $^{200}$Pb, $^{213}$Fr, $^{224}$Th, and $^{251}$Es. We have also obtained the contributions of the presaddle and postsaddle neutrons to the total prescission multiplicity. A detailed analysis of our results leads us to conclude that the chaos-weighted wall formula friction can adequately describe the fission dynamics in the presaddle region. This friction, however, turns out to be too weak to describe the postsaddle dynamics properly. This points to the need for a suitable explanation for the enhanced neutron emission in the postsaddle stage of nuclear fission.Comment: RevTex, 14 pages including 5 Postscript figures, results improved by using a different potential, conclusions remain unchanged, to appear in Phys. Rev.