Spatial and frequency domain effects of defects in 1D photonic crystal

The aim of this paper is to present the analysis of influence of defects in 1D photonic crystal (PC) on the density of states and simultaneously spontaneous emission, in both spatial and frequency domains. In our investigations we use an analytic model of 1D PC with defects. Our analysis reveals how presence of a defect causes a defect mode to appear. We show that a defect in 1D PC has local character, being negligible in regions of PC situated far from the defected elementary cell. We also analyze the effect of multiple defects, which lead to photonic band gap splitting.Comment: presented at International Workshop on Physics of Photonic Crystals and Metamaterials, Brussels, Belgium, 12-13.06.200

The importance of spatial configuration of neighbouring land cover for explanation of surface temperature of individual patches in urban landscapes

Context Relationships between spatial configuration of urban form and land surface temperature (LST) in the excess heat mitigation context are studied over larger tracts of land not allowing for micro-scale recommendations to urban design. Objectives To identify spatial configuration descriptors (SCDs) of urban form and the size of zone of influence conducive to the formation of the coldest and hottest land cover (LC) patches of different types (buildings, grass, paved and trees) from 2 m resolution LC and 2 and 100 m resolution LST maps at two time-steps in the summer. Methods Random Forest regression models were deployed to explain the LST of individual LC patches of different types based on SCDs of core LC patches and patches in their neighbourhoods. ANOVA was used to determine significantly different values of the most important SCDs associated with the coldest and hottest LC patches, and analysis of quartiles informed specification of their ranges. Results Urban form in the immediate neighbourhood to the core LC patches had a strong influence on their LST. Low elevation, high proximity to water, and high aggregation of trees, being important to the formation of the coldest patches of all types. High resolution of LST contributed to a higher accuracy of results. Elevation and proximity to water gained in importance as summer progressed. Conclusions Spatial configuration of urban form in the nearest proximity to individual LC patches and the use of fine resolution LST data are essential for issuing heat mitigation recommendations to urban planners relevant to micro-scales

Facilitating the elicitation of beliefs for use in Bayesian Belief modelling

Expert opinion is increasingly being used to inform Bayesian Belief Networks, in particular to define the conditional dependencies modelled by the graphical structure. The elicitation of such expert opinion remains a major challenge due to both the quantity of information required and the ability of experts to quantify subjective beliefs effectively. In this work, we introduce a method designed to initialise conditional probability tables based on a small number of simple questions that capture the overall shape of a conditional probability distribution before enabling the expert to refine their results in an efficient way. These methods have been incorporated into a software Application for Conditional probability Elicitation (ACE), freely available at https://github.com/KirstyLHassall/ACE Hassall (2019

Evidence of collaborative opportunities to ensure long-term sustainability in African farming

Farmers face the challenge of increasing production to feed a growing population and support livelihoods, whilst also improving the sustainability and resilience of cropping systems. Understanding the key factors that influence farming management practices is crucial for determining farmers’ adaptive capacity and willingness to engage in cooperative strategies. To that end, we investigated management practices that farmers adopt and the factors underlying farmers’ decision-making. We also aimed to identify the constraints that impede the adoption of strategies perceived to increase farming resilience and to explore how the acceleration of technology adoption through cooperation could ensure the long-term sustainability of farming. Surveys were distributed to farming stakeholders and professionals who worked across the contrasting environments of Morocco. We used descriptive statistics and analysis by log-linear modelling to predict the importance of factors influencing farmers’ decision- making. The results show that influencing factors tended to cluster around environmental pressures, crop characteristics and water availability with social drivers playing a lesser role. Subsidies were also found to be an important factor in decision-making. Farming stakeholders generally believed that collaborative networks are likely to facilitate the adoption of sustainable agricultural practices. We conclude that farmers need both eco- nomic incentives and technical support to enhance their adaptive capacity as this can lessen the socioeconomic vulnerability inherent in arid and semi-arid regions

Cultural adaptation of a UK evidence-based problem-solving intervention to support Polish prisoners at risk of suicidal behaviour : a cross-sectional survey using an Ecological Validity Model

OBJECTIVE: To complete a cultural adaptation of a UK evidence-based problem-solving intervention to support Polish prisoners at risk of suicidal behaviour. DESIGN: A cross-sectional survey participatory design using an Ecological Validity Model. SETTING: The study was a collaboration between: the Academy of Justice, in Warsaw, the University of Lodz, two Polish prisons (ZK Raciborz and ZK Klodzko) and the University of York (UK). METHODS: The adaptation process included an examination of the use of language, metaphors and content (ie, culturally appropriate and syntonic language), the changing of case study scenarios (relevance and acceptability) and maintenance of the theoretical underpinning of the problem-solving model (intervention comprehensibility and completeness). Four stages used: (1) a targeted demonstration for Polish prison staff, (2) a wider audit of the skills with Polish prison staff and students, (3) forward and back-translation of the adapted package, and (4) two iterative consultations with participants from stages (1) and (2) and prison officers from two Polish prisons. PARTICIPANTS: Self-selecting volunteer participants included: targeted prison staff (n=10), prison staff from the wider Polish penitentiary system (n=39), students from the University of Lodz (n=28) and prison officers from two Polish prisons (n=12). MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Acceptability and feasibility of the training package, reported in a series of knowledge user surveys. RESULTS: The recognised benefits of using the skills within the training package included: enhancing communication, reflective development, collaborative working, changing behaviour, empowering decision-making, relevance to crisis management situations and use of open-ended questions. The skills were endorsed to be used as part of future penitentiary training for prison officers in Poland. CONCLUSIONS: The skills had widespread appeal for use across the Polish penitentiary system. The materials were deemed relevant while adhering to the comprehensibility of the intervention. Further evaluation of the intervention should be explored using a randomised controlled trial design

Does participatory budgeting belong to democracy or bureaucracy? Case Study of Bialystok (Poland)

The paper presents the grounds for the wider project “Participatory budgeting - success or crisis of local democracy? Comparative legal study, aiming to explore what factors (dependent and independent from the policy makers) make from BP the instrument strengthening the local democracy and what are the barriers to fully exploit its potential. To this aim, we propose the theoretical model of the PB strengthening the local democracy. To test its validity, using the case of one of the Polish cities (Bialystok), we use the mix research method: the desk research, the qualitative and quantitative surveys and the qualitative interviews. The preliminary results have shown that PB do not imply the success of the democracy, but rather only its failure and the illusion of the citizens’ participation.Urszula K. Zawadzka-Pąk - Faculty of Law, University of Bialystok, PolandDominik Kościuk - Faculty of Law, University of Bialystok, PolandJustyna E. Kulikowska-Kulesza - Faculty of Law, University of Bialystok, PolandEwa Lotko - Faculty of Law, University of Bialystok, PolandAnna Brékine - University of Geneva, SwitzerlandAllegretti G., Paying Attention To The Participants’ Perceptions in Order to Trigger A Virtuous Circle, in: Hope For Democracy - 25 Years of Participatory Bugeting, Nelson Dias (org) 2014.Arnstein, S., A Ladder of Citizen Participation, “Journal of the American Planning Association” 1969, vol. 35.Damgaard B., Lewis J.M., Accountability and Citizen Participation, in: M. Bovens (ed.), Oxford Handbook of Public Accountability, Oxford 2014.De Tocqueville A., Democracy in America, Liberty Fund 2010.Huberts L., The Integrity of Governance, What it is, What We Know, What is Done, and Where to Go, Palgrave Macmillan 2014.Jensen M.C., Meckling W.H., Theory of the Firm: Managerial Behavior, Agency Costs and Ownership Structure, “Journal of Financial Economics” 1976, no. 4.Kennedy B., Unraveling Representative Bureaucracy: A Systematic. Analysis of the Literature, “Administration & Society” 2014, vol. 46 (4).Kingsly D.J., Representative Bureaucracy: An Interpretation of the British Civil Service, Yellow Springs, OH: Antioch Press 1944.Krislov S., Representative Bureaucracy, Ouid Pro Books, New Orleans, Louisiana 1974.Mosher F.C., Democracy and the Public Service, Oxford University Press, New York 1968.Murray C., The Tendrils of Community, in: D. Boaz (ed.), The Libertarian Reader, New York 1998.Senge P., The Fifth Discipline. The Art & Practice of the Learning Organization, Currency Doubleday, New York 1990.Wampler B., When Does Participatory Democracy Deepen the Quality of Democracy, “Comparative Politcs” 2008, no. 41 (1).36-428364

Mapping Soils in Ireland

peer-reviewedThis project is jointly funded by Teagasc and EPA STRIVE funding.Harmonised soil data across Europe with a 1:250 000 geo-referenced soil database will allow for exchange of data across member states and the provide the information needed for reporting on issues re-lating to soil quality under a future Soil Framework Directive. The current status of soils data available in Eu-rope is inconsistent at best. The Irish Soil Information System (ISIS) project is currently developing a national soil map of 1:250,000 and an associated digital soil information system, providing both spatial and quantita-tive information on soil types and properties across Ireland. Both the map and the information system will be freely available to the public through a designated website.This project is jointly funded by Teagasc and EPA STRIVE funding

An Immunological Marker of Tolerance to Infection in Wild Rodents

Hosts are likely to respond to parasitic infections by a combination of resistance (expulsion of pathogens) and tolerance (active mitigation of pathology). Of these strategies, the basis of tolerance in animal hosts is relatively poorly understood, with especially little known about how tolerance is manifested in natural populations. We monitored a natural population of field voles using longitudinal and cross-sectional sampling modes and taking measurements on body condition, infection, immune gene expression, and survival. Using analyses stratified by life history stage, we demonstrate a pattern of tolerance to macroparasites in mature compared to immature males. In comparison to immature males, mature males resisted infection less and instead increased investment in body condition in response to accumulating burdens, but at the expense of reduced reproductive effort. We identified expression of the transcription factor Gata3 (a mediator of Th2 immunity) as an immunological biomarker of this tolerance response. Time series data for individual animals suggested that macroparasite infections gave rise to increased expression of Gata3, which gave rise to improved body condition and enhanced survival as hosts aged. These findings provide a clear and unexpected insight into tolerance responses (and their life history sequelae) in a natural vertebrate population. The demonstration that such responses (potentially promoting parasite transmission) can move from resistance to tolerance through the course of an individual’s lifetime emphasises the need to incorporate them into our understanding of the dynamics and risk of infection in the natural environment. Moreover, the identification of Gata3 as a marker of tolerance to macroparasites raises important new questions regarding the role of Th2 immunity and the mechanistic nature of the tolerance response itself. A more manipulative, experimental approach is likely to be valuable in elaborating this further

Digital Soil Mapping in the Irish Soil Information System

Harmonised soil data across Europe with a 1:250 000 geo-referenced soil database will allow for exchange of data across member states and the provide the information needed by the European Commission and European Environment Agency for reporting on issues relating to soil quality under a fu-ture Soil Framework Directive. Within this context, the Environmental Protection Agency of the Republic of Ireland commissioned a project run by Teagasc to produce a 1:250 000 soil map of the Republic of Ire-land. Delivery of this map and associated database is a collaborative effort between Teagasc, the National Soil Resources Institute at Cranfield in the UK and University College Dublin.Environmental Protection Agenc