Application of the European Regional Seas Ecosystem Model (ERSEM) to assessing the eutrophication status in the OSPAR Maritime Area, with particular reference to nutrient discharges from Scottish salmonid aquaculture

Aquaculture production of salmonids in Scotland has grown over the last 15 years, exceeded 150,000 tonnes in 2001. There have been conflicting views as to the likely ecological impact of nutrient discharges from this activity. Whilst quantitative assessments of aquaculture nutrient discharges have been carried out, the debate regarding possible eutrophication impacts of these discharges has so far been largely speculative. In order to provide a quantitative basis for this discussion, a marine ecosystem model was used to simulate the consequences of a 50% reduction in aquaculture nutrient discharges, and the results are presented here

Building a culture

This study provides a case study of two higher educational institutions and their built environment discipline academic culture, with a specific focus on the impact of culture on the participation of females in the subject area. The two institutions, whilst both delivering built environment programmes, are very different. One is in the UK and is a new university, and the other is in Australia and in the top 200 universities of the world (THES, 2004). Comparative studies have become fashionable as a way of determining policy (Broadfoot, 2001) yet it is still important to acknowledge the character of the national policy within which the culture exists. Culture is a concept used to try and indicate the &quot;climate and practices&quot; developed within an organization to handle people, together with the values of the organization (Schein, 1997, p 3). The academic tribes have been described by Becher and Trowler (2001) in some detail, and they acknowledge the huge range of external forces now acting on academic cultures including a diversification of subject areas and the impact of gender on subject areas. Built environment education has traditionally been a gendered (male dominated) subject area and is making efforts to change (Greed, 1999; Turrell, Wilkinson, Astle and Yeo, 2002). The study will try to identify the cultural attributes that exist in each of the two built environment departments and programmes drawing on the signs and symbols that indicate the culture as well as drawing on staff / student experience. A comparative study will be carried out to determine differences and similarities, and potential lessons to be learned by each institution .<br /

Modelling the behaviour of nutrients in the coastal waters of Scotland

The overall goal of this project was to provide Scotland with a strategic ecosystem simulation tool for identifying maritime areas which could be at risk of eutrophication. The tool should provide spatially resolved output, and be capable of discriminating between different types and locations of nutrient inputs, so as to enable scenario analyses of different reduction options. The specific aims of the project were firstly to simulate the annual cycles of nutrients and ecological properties of Scottish waters and advise on areas which might suffer from eutrophication, and secondly, to determine the contribution of Scottish nutrient discharges to eutrophication in the OSPAR maritime area as a whole

Intranet and internet uptake and usage within UK building surveying practices. A user based evaluation of advantages and disadvantages

The &lsquo;single most important technological discovery since the birth of the p.c.&rsquo;, (Gates, 1996). The swift increase in Internet utilisation within businesses and surveying has changed working methods within UK based Surveying practices. User numbers expanded rapidly since the early 1990&rsquo;s and estimates place a figure of 150 million internet users globally (www.Yahoo.com, 2000). Sloan and Kee Low (2000) established that &lsquo;e-commerce&rsquo; is a revolutionary way of trading and conducting business activities. There are opportunities for surveying practices including, reducing communication time, increasing revenues from new and existing sources, enhanced client satisfaction and competitive advantage (Cronin, 1996). Others (Dixon, 1998) perceive threats, such as &lsquo;disintermediation&rsquo;, to the traditional role of the surveyor.This research examined the levels of internet and intranet access within the UK Building and Quantity Surveying practices and corporate firms to establish how the internet has affected working methods and client requirements. The research method comprised a qualitative approach using an email and postal questionnaire survey of a random sample of practices. The questionnaire findings formed the basis of semi structured interviews conducted with senior management of large practices to gain a deeper understanding of the issues identified within the survey.Data analysis revealed the traditional role of the surveyor as a broker of information may be under threat in the long term. Generally levels of internet access in the sample exceed that of general business levels (Dti, 2000) with the largest growth pre 1997. The perceived advantages and barriers to Intranet and Internet usage were identified by the research.<br /

Modelling the behaviour of nutrients in the coastal waters of Scotland - an update on inputs from Scottish aquaculture and their impact on eutrophication status

A previous study estimated that salmon farming contributed approximately 6% of Scotland's nitrogen-nutrient input to coastal waters, and 13% of phosphorus (based on 2001 production figures). However, in some areas of the west of Scotland with small freshwater catchment areas and low levels of human habitation, aquaculture inputs represented greater than 80% of the total. In 2002, FRS published results from an ecosystem modelling study involving a collaboration with the Institute for Marine Research, University of Hamburg, and the Macaulay Land Use Research Institute in Aberdeen, to assess the eutrophication impact of various nutrient inputs to Scottish waters. The results suggested that a 50% reduction in aquaculture salmon production would have only a small impact on water quality which would be undetectable against the background of natural variability due to climate variations. Estimating aquaculture nutrient discharge is a difficult task. The 2002 study was based on data relating to the consented biomass of fish at farm sites in sea lochs. Since then, new data have become available on the actual harvest of fish at all sites in Scotland. In this report, we re-assess the salmon production in Scotland in 2001 and the consequent nutrient discharge, and repeat the ecosystem model runs to estimate the impact of reduction scenarios on eutrophication status. The new data indicate that the previous study had overestimated salmon production and nutrient discharge by approximately 18% Scotland wide. Production and discharge at Shetland and in the Southern Hebrides had been under-estimated, whilst that in the Minches had been over-estimated. New runs of the ecosystem model show that the original conclusions on eutrophication impact were sound. A scenario of 50% reduction in salmon production produced regional changes in water quality which were less than 25% of the natural variability due to climate. New runs simulating a cessation of aquaculture showed that even this extreme reduction scenario produced changes in water quality that were less than half the natural variability

The business skills of graduate surveyors

The research examines the role of lifelong learning and the increasing emphasis on the development of transferable key skills, which formed part of the background to the educational debate emanating from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors &ldquo;Agenda for Change&rdquo; vision to elevate the status of the RICS qualification.Extensive research and consultation by the RICS culminated in a series of initiatives to &ldquo;reinforce the integrity and expertise of the RICS qualification&rdquo; (RICS, 2003) including a proposal to introduce a mandatory postgraduate business qualification for newly qualified surveyors. The detailed proposal met with opposition from a range of stakeholders. However there appeared to be significant support for the concept of improving the management skills of graduate surveyors. The controversial aspects appeared to be the delivery methods and the definition of the appropriate content in a &lsquo;one size fits all&rsquo; package.The paper is drawn from the findings of a dissertation that examined by means of questionnaires to the differing stakeholder perspectives of employers, educators and students in one UK location, across a range of surveying professional disciplines. The paper provides an opportunity to explore and debate the difficulties in meeting the needs of a complex and wide ranging profession, whilst illustrating the importance of the vision of the RICS.<br /

The impact of globalisation on building surveying in Europe

This research examined the impact of globalisation on building surveying in Europe. Globalisation has resulted in the emergence of three large trading blocs or a global economy depending on the view one takes. This has impacted on property in two ways, by creating transnational companies who operate in many countries but require branding of their property, and companies who wish to invest in property markets other than their country of origin.Building Surveyors have professional expertise and knowledge valued in the UK since the 1960 and 1970s but until recently not recognised in Europe, partly due to poor awareness of Building Surveying (BS) expertise, legal constraints, and practises relating to the employment of professionals. This is changing with the establishment of European Surveying associations and the globalisation of the RICS.The results showed four factors provided the reasons for the globalisation of BS skills. These were that Building Surveyors provided a consistent level of service for their clients. Secondly that English is the language of business. Thirdly, clients perceive Europe as a single trading bloc with a need for technical representation in each investment centre, providing them with a fast, knowledgeable service. Fourthly, clients perceive that UK Building Surveyors know what international, or transnational, investors want.The finding on the current demand for the BS services in Europe is that though demand is large, few Building Surveyors are located in Europe. Secondly, both investors and occupiers require the services of Building Surveyors, and local companies / individuals are beginning to use their professional services. Finally, there is a diverse range of demand for the many BS skills.Five key barriers to the practice of BS skills in Europe emerged from the research. Firstly, there was the problem of limited local legal and technical knowledge possessed by outsiders. Secondly, there are legal barriers to practice in some cases. Thirdly, other professionals can, and do, offer the services of the Building Surveyor. Fourthly, there can be cultural differences between &lsquo;values&rsquo; and &lsquo;norms&rsquo; required in business that constitute barriers. Finally there can be &lsquo;communication&rsquo; problems when the Building Surveyor is not located in the country where the service is required.<br /

Computational Fluid Dynamic Studies of Vortex Amplifier Design for the Nuclear Industry—II. Transient Conditions

In this paper computational fluid dynamics (CFD) techniques have been used to investigate the effect of changes to the geometry of a vortex amplifier (VXA) in the context of glovebox operations in the nuclear industry. These investigations were required because of anomalous behavior identified when, for operational reasons, a long-established VXA design was reduced in scale. The study simulates the transient aspects of two effects: back-flow into the glovebox through the VXA supply ports, and the precessing vortex core in the amplifier outlet. A temporal convergence error study indicates that there is little to be gained from reducing the time step duration below 0.1 ms. Based upon this criterion, the results of the simulation show that the percentage imbalance in the domain was well below the required figure of 1, and imbalances for momentum in all three axes were all below measurable values. Furthermore, there was no conclusive evidence of periodicity in the flow perturbations at the glovebox boundary, although good evidence of periodicity in the device itself and in the outlet pipe was seen. Under all conditions the modified geometry performed better than the control geometry with regard to aggregate reversed supply flow. The control geometry exhibited aggregate nonaxisymmetric supply port back-flow for almost all of the simulated period, unlike the alternative geometry for which the flow through the supply ports was positive, although still nonaxisymmetric, for most of the period. The simulations show how transient flow structures in the supply ports can cause flow to be reversed in individual ports, whereas aggregate flow through the device remains positive. Similar to the supply ports, flow through the outlet of the VXA under high swirl conditions is also nonaxisymmetric. A time-dependent reverse flow region was observed in both the outlet and the diffuser. It is possible that small vortices in the outlet, coupled with the larger vortex in the chamber, are responsible for the oscillations, which cause the shift in the axis of the precessing vortex core (and ultimately in the variations of mass flow in the individual supply ports). Field trials show that the modified geometry reduces the back-flow of oxygen into the glovebox by as much as 78. At purge rates of 0.65 m 3h the modified geometry was found to be less effective, the rate of leakage from the VXA increasing by 16-20. Despite this reduced performance, leakage from the modified geometry was still 63 less than the control geometry. © 2012 American Society of Mechanical Engineers

The association between sedentary leisure and physical activity in middle-aged adults

Aim The aim of this study was to examine the association between time spent in sedentary leisure and physical activity level in mid-aged men and women

Thermohaline forcing and interannual variability of northwestern inflows into the northern North Sea

A long-established, 127 km-long hydrographic section in the northern North Sea at 59.28°N that runs from the eastern coast of Orkney (2.23°W) to the central North Sea (0°) crosses the path of the main inflows of Atlantic water. Data from 122 occupations between 1989 and 2015 are examined to determine the annual cycle and long-term trends of temperature, salinity and depth-varying geostrophic flow across the section. In an average year, the geostrophic flow referenced to the seafloor is at its narrowest (40 km) in winter, during which time it is driven by the strong horizontal salinity gradient; the horizontal temperature gradient is very weak. Velocity exceeds 4 cm s−1, but transport is at a minimum (0.11 Sv). In the deeper water in the east of the section, thermal stratification develops throughout summer and persists until October, whereas the west is tidally mixed all year. The bottom temperature gradient becomes the primary driver of the geostrophic flow, which is fastest (9 cm s−1) in September and broadest (100 km) in October. Maximum transport (0.36 Sv) occurs in October. Throughout the summer, the horizontal salinity gradient weakens, as does its contribution to the flow. However, it nevertheless acts to broaden the flow west of the location of the strongest horizontal temperature gradient. Section-mean de-seasoned temperature is found to be positively correlated to the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation and negatively correlated to the North Atlantic Oscillation. These results refine our understanding of the thermohaline forcing of Atlantic inflow into the northern North Sea, particularly in relation to the salinity distribution. Understanding the variability of this inflow is important for understanding the dynamics of the North Sea ecosystem