A Future for Public Service Television: Content and Platforms in a Digital World

Report on the inquiry, chaired by Lord Puttnam, that examined the future of public service television in the UK in the 21st century: The Inquiry, launched in November 2015, has focused on the purposes of television in an era characterised by technological transformations, shifts in audience consumption habits, and changes in cultural and political attitudes. The report reflects on the extent to which the UK’s most popular television channels have addressed these issues and whether they continue to represent the interests and tell the stories of all the citizens of the UK. Above all, the report seeks to highlight the conditions that may allow for the production and circulation of high quality, creative and relevant public service content in these increasingly complex circumstances

The removing of selected pharmaceuticals on WWTP in the Czech Republic

In this article, the results of three years monitoring of selected pharmaceuticals (diclofenac, ibuprofen, carbamazepine, salicylic acid, clofibric acid) in the wastewaters of the Czech Republic are presented. The monitoring was performed on selected Wastewater Treatment Plants (WWTP) with various treatment technology and designed capacity. The concentrations and treatment efficiency of these substances were observed in various profiles of each WWTP, including influent, mechanical pretreatment, biological treatment, effluent. The main processes of removing selected pharmaceuticals during wastewater treatment are discussed. These results are used for design wastewater treatment technology with improved treatment efficiency of these substances

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on European police officers: Stress, demands, and coping resources

Purpose: Facing the COVID-19 pandemic, police officers are confronted with various novel challenges, which might place additional strain on officers. This mixed-method study investigated officers’ strain over a three- month-period after the lockdown. Methods: In an online survey, 2567 police officers (77% male) from Austria, Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Spain participated at three measurement points per country in spring, 2020. Three-level growth curve models assessed changes in strain and its relation to stressor appraisal, emotion regulation, and pre- paredness through training. To add context to the findings, free response answers about officers’ main tasks, stressors, and crisis measures were coded inductively. Results: On average, officers seemed to tolerate the pandemic with slight decreases in strain over time. Despite substantial variance between countries, 66% of the variance occurred between individuals. Sex, work experience, stressor appraisal, emotion regulation, and preparedness significantly predicted strain. Risk of infection and deficient communication emerged as main stressors. Officers’ reports allowed to derive implications for governmental, organizational, and individual coping strategies during pandemics. Conclusion: Preparing for a pandemic requires three primary paths: 1) enacting unambiguous laws and increasing public compliance through media communication, 2) being logistically prepared, and 3) improving stress regulation skills in police training

Metal ion-implanted TiN thin films: Induced effects on structural and optical properties

The ion implantation technique has a number of advantages over conventional methods for the improvement of thin films that offer the various possibilities of their use in different industrial and technological fields. Herein, we present the effects of metal ion implantation on the structural and optical properties of TiN thin films. TiN films of 170 nm thickness were grown by d.c. reactive sputtering on Si (100) wafers and then irradiated at 5×1016 ions/cm2 with either Au, Ag, or Cu ions by using two different energies per each implanted metal. The results showed that as deposited TiN crystallizes in form of fcc cubic structure, with the crystallites preferentially oriented along the (111) plane. For all implanted layers the cubic crystallographic structure was preserved, but compared to as deposited TiN the crystallites were smaller and the lattice was contracted. Besides, the surface compositional analysis of as deposited sample showed the coexistence of TiN, TiO2 and TiOxNy phases and this was related to the surface oxidation of the films due to the exposure to air. After implantation, the results were almost similar for all metals, showing an increase in TiO2 contribution and the formation of pure metallic Au and Ag phases, while copper is in the Cu2+ state, which is attributed to Cu(II)-oxide and Cu(OH)2. The microstructural characteristics including defect formation, changes in the crystallite size and lattice contraction, and also growth of different metallic phases during implantations were correlated with the findings of the optical characterization of the implanted films. For as deposited film we found energy gap of 2.91 eV, which was lower than the value typical for TiN. After implantation the gap was shifted to higher energies, while at the visible part of the region, additional energy levels, at photon energies below 2.9 eV were observed. Further, all implanted films showed degraded photocatalytic activity compared to as deposited TiN, among which Cu-implanted samples exhibited the best photocatalytic performances. The lower photocatalytic activity of Au and Ag-implanted films compared to Cu implantations was ascribed to larger structural defects and formation of less favorable electronic states.IX International School and Conference on Photonics : PHOTONICA2023 : book of abstracts; August 28 - September 1, 2023; Belgrad

Weighted STOP-Bang and screening for sleep-disordered breathing

BACKGROUND: STOP-Bang is a tool for predicting the likelihood for sleep-disordered breathing (SDB). In the conventional score, all variables are dichotomous. Our aim was to identify whether modifying the STOP-Bang scoring tool by weighting the variables could improve test characteristics. METHODS: Subjects who participated in the Sleep Heart Health Study (SHHS) were included in this analysis using a derivation dataset (n = 1667) and a validation dataset (n = 4774). In the derivation dataset, each STOP-Bang variable was evaluated using linear regression against the presence of SDB (AHI > 15/h) in order to determine the coefficients that would allow variable weighting. In other models, BMI, age, and neck circumference were entered as continuous variables. The sum of the weighted dichotomous variables yielded a weighted STOP-Bang (wSTOP-Bang). The sum of the weighted-continuous variables yielded a continuous STOP-Bang (cSTOP-Bang). The wSTOP-Bang, cSTOP-Bang, and the conventional STOP-Bang scores were then applied to the validation dataset, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were constructed. RESULTS: The area under the curve (AUC) for cSTOP-Bang (0.738) was greater than the AUC for conventional STOP-Bang (0.706) and wSTOP-Bang (0.69). The sensitivities for cSTOP-Bang, STOP-Bang, and wSTOP-Bang were similar at 93.2, 93.2, and 93.3 %, respectively. The cSTOP-Bang had a higher specificity (31.8 %) than both STOP-Bang (23.2 %) and wSTOP-Bang (23.6 %). The cSTOP-Bang had a higher likelihood ratio of a positive test (1.36) than both STOP-Bang (1.21) and wSTOP-Bang (1.22). CONCLUSIONS: Modifying the STOP-Bang score by weighting the variables and using continuous variables for BMI, age, and neck circumference can maintain sensitivity while improving specificity, positive likelihood ratio, and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve

PsycINFO classification: 2300; 2323

Abstract Most research on visual search in aiming at far targets assumes preprogrammed motor control implying that relevant visual information is detected prior to the final shooting or throwing movements. Eye movement data indirectly support this claim for stationary tasks. Using the basketball jump shot as experimental task we investigated whether in dynamic tasks in which the target can be seen until ball release, continuous, instead of preprogrammed, motor control is possible. We tested this with the temporal occlusion paradigm: 10 expert shooters took shots under four viewing conditions, namely, no vision, full vision, early vision (vision occluded during the final AE350 ms before ball release), and late vision (vision occluded until these final AE350 ms). Late-vision shooting appeared to be as good as shooting with full vision while early-vision performance was severely impaired. The results imply that the final shooting movements were controlled by continuous detection and use of visual information until ball release. The data further suggest that visual and movement control of aiming at a far target develop in close correspondence with the style of execution. Ó 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved

Formation and characteristics of ions and charged aerosol particles in a native Australian Eucalypt forest

International audienceBiogenic aerosol formation is likely to contribute significantly to the global aerosol load. In recent years, new-particle formation has been observed in various ecosystems around the world but hardly any measurements have taken place in the terrestrial Southern Hemisphere. Here, we report the first results of atmospheric ion and charged particle concentrations as well as of new-particle formation in a Eucalypt forest in Tumbarumba, South-East Australia, from July 2005 to October 2006. The measurements were carried out with an Air Ion Spectrometer (AIS) with a size range from 0.34 to 40 nm. The Eucalypt forest was a very strong source of new aerosol particles. Daytime aerosol formation took place on 52% of days with acceptable data, which is 2?3 times as often as in the Nordic boreal zone. Average growth rates for negative/positive 1.5?3 nm particles during these formation events were 2.89/2.68 nmh?1, respectively; for 3-7 nm particles 4.26/4.03, and for 7?20 nm particles 8.90/7.58 nmh?1, respectively. The growth rates for large ions were highest when the air was coming from the native forest which suggests that the Eucalypts were a strong source of condensable vapours. Average concentrations of cluster ions (0.34?1.8 nm) were 2400/1700 cm?3 for negative/positive ions, very high compared to most other measurements around the world. One reason behind these high concentrations could be the strong radon efflux from the soils around the Tumbarumba field site. Furthermore, comparison between night-time and daytime concentrations supported the view that cluster ions are produced close to the surface within the boundary layer also at night but that large ions are mostly produced in daytime. Finally, a previously unreported phenomenon, nocturnal aerosol formation, appeared in 32% of the analysed nights but was clustered almost entirely within six months from summer to autumn in 2006. From January to May, nocturnal formation was 2.5 times as frequent as daytime formation. Therefore, it appears that in summer and autumn, nocturnal production was the major mechanism for aerosol formation in Tumbarumba

Development of a new ultra sensitive real-time PCR assay (ultra sensitive RTQ-PCR) for the quantification of HBV-DNA

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Improved sensitivity of HBV-DNA tests is of critical importance for the management of HBV infection. Our aim was to develop and assess a new ultra sensitive in-house real-time PCR assay for HBV-DNA quantification (ultra sensitive RTQ-PCR).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Previously used HBV-DNA standards were calibrated against the WHO 1^stInternational Standard for HBV-DNA (OptiQuant^®HBV-DNA Quantification Panel, Accrometrix Europe B.V.). The 95% and 50% HBV-DNA detection end-point of the assay were 22.2 and 8.4 IU/mL. According to the calibration results, 1 IU/mL equals 2.8 copies/mL. Importantly the clinical performance of the ultra sensitive real-time PCR was tested similar (67%) to the Procleix Ultrio discriminatory HBV test (dHBV) (70%) in low-titer samples from patients with occult Hepatitis B. Finally, in the comparison of ultra sensitive RTQ-PCR with the commercially available COBAS TaqMan HBV Test, the in-house assay identified 94.7% of the 94 specimens as positive versus 90.4% identified by TaqMan, while the quantitative results that were positive by both assay were strongly correlated (<it>r </it>= 0.979).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>We report a new ultra sensitive real time PCR molecular beacon based assay with remarkable analytical and clinical sensitivity, calibrated against the WHO 1^stInternational standard.</p