DEFECT PHENOMENA IN SUPERCONDUCTING OXIDES AND ANALOGOUS CERAMIC OXIDES

In this review we discuss defect phenomena in superconducting oxides. We survey those aspects of oxide superconductors which relate them most closely to conventional ceramic oxides, concentrating on processes and behaviour related to defects. We also identify areas of difference between two types of oxide.Theoretical modelling of conventional oxides has been extremely effective, and we emphasize that some of these modelling tools can be exploited for the superconducting oxides too. In particular, we stress those methods and ideas that provide a framework for understanding behaviour, those that provide a datasbase of good quantitative experiments and those that provide an established and tested approach to quantitative modelling as a guide to prediction, optimization and extrapolation.Much progress has been made in both theory and experiment, but some problems do remain and these have not been omitted from our discussions. There is potential to exploit past work on defects in oxides, so as to control defect processes and microstructure and hence to enhance performance

Software Citation in Theory and Practice

In most fields, computational models and data analysis have become a significant part of how research is performed, in addition to the more traditional theory and experiment. Mathematics is no exception to this trend. While the system of publication and credit for theory and experiment (journals and books, often monographs) has developed and has become an expected part of the culture, how research is shared and how candidates for hiring, promotion are evaluated, software (and data) do not have the same history. A group working as part of the FORCE11 community developed a set of principles for software citation that fit software into the journal citation system, allow software to be published and then cited, and there are now over 50,000 DOIs that have been issued for software. However, some challenges remain, including: promoting the idea of software citation to developers and users; collaborating with publishers to ensure that systems collect and retain required metadata; ensuring that the rest of the scholarly infrastructure, particularly indexing sites, include software; working with communities so that software efforts "count" and understanding how best to cite software that has not been published

Risk factors for mortality from imported falciparum malaria in the United Kingdom over 20 years: an observational study

Objectives To determine which travellers with malaria are at greatest risk of dying, highlighting factors which can be used to target health messages to travellers. Design Observational study based on 20 years of UK national data. Setting National register of malaria cases. Participants 25 054 patients notified with Plasmodium falciparum malaria, of whom 184 died, between 1987 and 2006. Main outcome measures Comparison between those with falciparum malaria who died and non-fatal cases, including age, reason for travel, country of birth, time of year diagnosed, malaria prophylaxis used. Results Mortality increased steadily with age, with a case fatality of 25/548 (4.6%) in people aged >65 years, adjusted odds ratio 10.68 (95% confidence interval 6.4 to 17.8), P<0.001 compared with 18–35 year olds. There were no deaths in the ≤5 year age group. Case fatality was 3.0% (81/2740 cases) in tourists compared with 0.32% (26/8077) in travellers visiting friends and relatives (adjusted odds ratio 8.2 (5.1 to 13.3), P<0.001). Those born in African countries with endemic malaria had a case fatality of 0.4% (36/8937) compared with 2.4% (142/5849) in others (adjusted odds ratio 4.6 (3.1 to 9.9), P<0.001). Case fatality was particularly high from the Gambia. There was an inverse correlation in mortality between region of presentation and number of cases seen in the region (R2=0.72, P<0.001). Most delay in fatal cases was in seeking care. Conclusions Most travellers acquiring malaria are of African heritage visiting friends and relatives. In contrast the risks of dying from malaria once acquired are highest in the elderly, tourists, and those presenting in areas in which malaria is seldom seen. Doctors often do not think of these as high risk groups for malaria; for this reason they are important groups to target in pre-travel advice

First year student experience

The application was made on behalf of the undergraduate courses team who sought to enhance the first year experience by engaging students in the practice of business. The intention was to develop and signpost enterprising qualities and characteristics in first year learners and develop confidence as well as competence. The undergraduate review for FBL commenced in September 2009. This offered an opportunity to innovate and build good practice in enterprise learning as a pilot to inform the undergraduate review. The team sought to provide a coherent and relevant set of learning experiences that could be achieved outside structured curriculum that would enable learning through live projects

Self-assembly in the electrical double layer of ionic liquids

We have studied the structure of two ionic liquids confined between negatively charged mica sheets. Both liquids exhibit interfacial layering, however the repeat distance is dramatically different for the two liquids. Our results suggest a transition from alternating cation-anion monolayers to tail-to-tail cation bilayers when the length of the cation hydrocarbon chain is increased

The impact of a high versus a low glycaemic index breakfast cereal meal on verbal episodic memory in healthy adolescents

In this study, healthy adolescents consumed a) a low glycaemic index (G.I.) breakfast cereal meal, or b) a high G.I. breakfast cereal meal, before completing a test of verbal episodic memory in which the memory materials were encoded under conditions of divided attention. Analysis of remembering/forgetting indices revealed that the High G.I. breakfast group remembered significantly more items relative to the Low G.I. breakfast group after a long delay. The superior performance observed in the High G.I. group, relative to the Low G.I. group, may be due to the additional glucose availability provided by the high G.I. meal at the time of memory encoding. This increased glucose availability may be necessary for effective encoding under dual task conditions

Outdoor music festivals: Cacophonous consumption or melodious moderation?

Large outdoor music festivals have emerged as part of a general expansion of licensed recreational activities, but in research terms they have been largely impenetrable due to commercial sensitivities. These sensitivities notwithstanding, the number and scale of such events necessitate a greater understanding of alcohol and drug use and the potential to promote normative protective behaviours in this context. This study examines self-reported alcohol and drug behaviours of 1589 attendees at a music festival in Scotland during the summer of 2008. Similarities between the outdoor rock music festivals and the dance club scene are considered alongside the challenges associated with risk reduction in these settings. Results show that alcohol was consumed by the majority of samples; however, negative consequences were reported by a minority of respondents, suggesting evidence of controlled hedonism within a situation traditionally associated with unrestrained excess. Similarly, the majority of samples did not use drugs. The majority also report a number of self-regulating protective behaviours suggesting that alcohol and drug use is contained within a developing social culture of ‘controlled intoxication’. Results further suggest that although music festivals are transitory events, there is a degree of consistency amongst attendees. Music festivals may therefore be atypical but potentially effective environments to increase protective behaviours using normative messaging and modern communications media. This study was resourced exclusively by local alcohol and drug partnerships

A novel heuristic and provable bounds for reconfigurable architecture design

Published versio

FPGA Architecture Optimization Using Geometric Programming

Volume 4 No 13 of the periodical Progression. Published November, February, May and August by The Radiant Healing Centre. SPCL PER BT 732 P76 V.1,1932-V.5,193