The economic port city interface of Ghent, Belgium

The economies of scale of the maritime transport industry is creating a diverse set of long term problems. The infrastructure costs are rising, employment rates are declining and the local capture of the created value added is low. Therefore, the OECD called to re-establish the relations between port and city to achieve a more resilient and competitive port city complex. However, before these re-establishments can be achieved, the port city has to be theoretically redefined taking into account the four different port city interfaces: economic, social-cultural, institutional and spatial. In this paper a conceptual model and methodological framework is constructed to understand the port city assemblage. Based on these, part three examine the economic interface of the Belgian port city of Ghent, an atypical ARA port with minor transport activities and a high share of value added by industrial activitie

Onderzoek naar de verbetering van tongvangsten in de outrigvisserij

De laatste jaren is de boomkorvisserij onder druk komen te staan vanwege de effecten van deze methode van vissen op het mariene ecosysteem. De recente stijging van gasolieprijzen en daarmee samenhangende brandstofkosten van rond de 0.20 €/ltr tot ca. 0.70 €/ltr brengen de rendabiliteit van deze visserijsector in gevaar. Er wordt dan ook betwijfelt of de huidige boomkorvisserij nog toekomst heeft . Om deze redenen zoeken vissers naar alternatieve vangstmethoden, zoals de ‘outrig’ visserij. Deze methode, waarbij met een bordentrawl vanuit de gieken van een boomkorschip wordt gevist levert een aanzienlijke brandstofbesparing op, maar de vangst van tong is doorgaans minder door geringer bodemcontact

Improved sperm freezing in the endangered African wild dog (Lycaon pictus) using a two-step dilution TRIS-egg yolk extender containing Equex STM

Development of assisted breeding techniques can aid conservation and management of the endangered African wild dog (Lycaon pictus). Previous attempts to freeze sperm from this species has proven unsuccessful with sperm motility dropping to nearly 0% within 2 h of thawing. The aim of this study was to improve the freezing success of African wild dog sperm by testing two routinely used canine cryopreservation protocols. Sperm was frozen from n=3 captive African wild dog males housed at Albuquerque BioPark (Albuquerque, NM, USA) and Binder Park Zoo (Battle Creek, MI, USA) during the breeding season (Aug-Sept 2014). Freshly collected semen samples were evaluated for volume, colour, pH, motility, viability, morphology, sperm number, acrosome status and DNA integrity. Each sample was split and frozen using two different protocols. Protocol 1: semen was diluted with a Tris-egg yolk extender containing 8% glycerol and 20% egg yolk, and slowly cooled from 37°C to 4°C over 2.5 h. The sample was then loaded into 0.25 mL straws, suspended 4 cm over liquid nitrogen vapour for 10 min, then plunged in liquid nitrogen. Protocol 2: semen was first diluted with a Tris-egg yolk extender containing only 3% glycerol and 20% egg yolk, followed by a second extender (same composition) now containing 7% glycerol and 1% Equex STM, added after the 2.5 h refrigeration period. The freezing procedure was the same as Protocol 1. Straws from both protocols were thawed in a 37ᵒC water bath, but Protocol 2 straws were further diluted by with a thawing solution which that consisted of the initial extender solution without glycerol and egg yolk. Sperm were incubated at 37 ᵒC and motility evaluated at 5 min and every 2 h for 8 h after thawing. Viability, morphology and acrosome integrity was evaluated over 6 h and DNA integrity was evaluated immediately post-thaw. Sperm motility declined significantly for both protocols immediately after thawing (fresh 78.9 ± 2.6%; Protocol 1 24.4 ± 5.0%; Protocol 2 36.7 ± 4.2%; P ≤ 0.05). Motility was significantly higher for Protocol 2 from 2 h after thawing (Protocol 1 1.0 ± 0.8%; Protocol 2 30.8 ± 1.9%; P ≤ 0.05) and sperm remained motile for up to 8 h. Sperm frozen with Protocol 2 also had significantly higher viability (Protocol 1 37.0 ± 5.7%; Protocol 2 65.3 ± 9.9%; P ≤ 0.05) and acrosome integrity (Protocol 1 22.8 ± 8.2%; Protocol 2 69.3 ± 8.8%; P ≤ 0.05) immediately after thawing. There was no difference in the proportion of normal morphology or DNA fragmentation between both protocols. Our results demonstrate that using a two-step dilution with TRIS-egg yolk extender containing Equex STM yields greatly improved post-thaw quality and longevity in African wild dog sperm; making it suitable for use in artificial insemination

Design and implementation of GRIP: a computerized glucose control system at a surgical intensive care unit

BACKGROUND: Tight glucose control by intensive insulin therapy has become a key part of critical care and is an important field of study in acute coronary care. A balance has to be found between frequency of measurements and the risk of hypoglycemia. Current nurse-driven protocols are paper-based and, therefore, rely on simple rules. For safety and efficiency a computer decision support system that employs complex logic may be superior to paper protocols. METHODS: We designed and implemented GRIP, a stand-alone Java computer program. Our implementation of GRIP will be released as free software. Blood glucose values measured by a point-of-care analyzer were automatically retrieved from the central laboratory database. Additional clinical information was asked from the nurse and the program subsequently advised a new insulin pump rate and glucose sampling interval. RESULTS: Implementation of the computer program was uneventful and successful. GRIP treated 179 patients for a total of 957 patient-days. Severe hypoglycemia (< 2.2 mmol/L) only occurred once due to human error. With a median (IQR) of 4.9 (4.2 – 6.2) glucose measurements per day the median percentage of time in which glucose fell in the target range was 78%. Nurses rated the program as easy to work with and as an improvement over the preceding paper protocol. They reported no increase in time spent on glucose control. CONCLUSION: A computer driven protocol is a safe and effective means of glucose control at a surgical ICU. Future improvements in the recommendation algorithm may further improve safety and efficiency

Health-related quality of life of children and their parents 2 years after critical illness

Background: Pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) survivors are at risk for prolonged morbidities interfering with daily life. The current study examined parent-reported health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in former critically ill children and parents themselves and aimed to determine whether withholding parenteral nutrition (PN) in the first week of critical illness affected children’s and parents’ HRQoL 2 years later. Methods: Children who participated in the pediatric early versus late parenteral nutrition in critical illness (PEPaNIC) trial and who were testable 2 years later (n = 1158) were included. Their HRQoL outcomes were compared with 405 matched healthy controls. At PICU admission, childre

Greenhouse gas emissions in The Netherlands 1990-2012 : National Inventory Report 2014

In 2012 is de totale uitstoot van broeikasgassen van Nederland, zoals CO2, methaan en lachgas, met ongeveer 1,7 procent gedaald ten opzichte van 2011. Deze daling komt vooral door een lager brandstofgebruik in de energie- en transportsector. Dit lijkt een gevolg van de economische recessie, waardoor emissies door elektriciteitsproductie en het wegtransport in Nederland zijn afgenomen. Cijfers De totale broeikasgasemissie wordt uitgedrukt in CO2-equivalenten en bedraagt in 2012 191,7 teragram (megaton of miljard kilogram) . Ten opzichte van de uitstoot in het Kyoto-basisjaar (213,2 Tg CO2-equivalenten) is dit een afname van ongeveer 10 procent. Het basisjaar, dat afhankelijk van het broeikasgas 1990 of 1995 is, dient voor het Kyoto-protocol als referentie voor de uitstoot van broeikasgassen. De uitstoot van de overige broeikasgassen zoals lachgas en methaan is sinds het basisjaar met 51 procent afgenomen. De CO2-uitstoot daarentegen is in deze periode met 4 procent gestegen. Landen zijn voor het Kyoto-protocol verplicht om de totale uitstoot van broeikasgassen op twee manieren te rapporteren: met en zonder het soort landgebruik en de verandering daarin. Dit is namelijk van invloed op de uitstoot van broeikasgassen. Voorbeelden zijn natuurontwikkeling (dat CO2 bindt) of ontbossing (waardoor CO2 wordt uitgestoten). In bovengenoemde getallen zijn deze zogeheten LULUCF-emissies (Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry) niet meegenomen. Overige onderdelen inventarisatie Het RIVM stelt jaarlijks op verzoek van het Ministerie van Infrastructuur en Milieu (IenM) de inventarisatie van broeikasgasemissies op. De inventarisatie bevat trendanalyses om ontwikkelingen in de uitstoot van broeikasgassen tussen 1990 en 2012 te verklaren, en een analyse van de onzekerheid in deze getallen. Ook is aangegeven welke bronnen het meest aan deze onzekerheid bijdragen. Daarnaast biedt de inventarisatie documentatie van de gebruikte berekeningsmethoden, databronnen en toegepaste emissiefactoren. Met deze inventarisatie voldoet Nederland aan de nationale rapportageverplichtingen voor 2012 van het Klimaatverdrag van de Verenigde Naties (UNFCCC), van het Kyoto-Protocol en van het Bewakingsmechanisme Broeikasgassen van de Europese Unie.Total greenhouse gas emissions from the Netherlands in 2012 decreased by approximately 1.7 per cent, compared with 2011 emissions. This decrease is mainly the result of decreased fuel combustion in the Energy sector (increased electricity import) and in road transport. In 2012, total direct greenhouse gas emissions (excluding emissions from LULUCF - land use, land use change and forestry) in the Netherlands amounted to 191.7 Tg CO2 eq. This is approximately 10 per cent below the emissions in the base year (213.2 Tg CO2 eq.). The 51% reduction in the non-CO2 emissions in this period is counterbalanced by 4 per cent increase in CO2 emissions since 1990. This report documents the Netherlands' 2014 annual submission of its greenhouse gas emissions inventory in accordance with the guidelines provided by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Kyoto Protocol and the European Union's Greenhouse Gas Monitoring Mechanism. The report comprises explanations of observed trends in emissions; a description of an assessment of key sources and their uncertainty; documentation of methods, data sources and emission factors applied; and a description of the quality assurance system and the verification activities performed on the data.Ministerie van I&