New observations on Saturnella saturnus (Steinecke) Fott: the first British record of a little-known enigmatic ‘green’ alga

Saturnella saturnus was discovered in March 2014 in open-water pools on blanket peatland at the Moor House - Upper Teesdale National Nature Reserve, straddling Cumbria and County Durham in NE England. This is the first record for the British Isles of a little-known alga known previously only from a few peat bog areas, mainly in mainland Europe. The literature is reviewed and new observations presented on its morphology and reproduction based on LM examination of living cells. New observations on the chloroplast structure and cytoplasmic inclusions (especially oil droplets) are discussed in relation to the findings of earlier studies. Doubt attaches as whether it is a chlorophyte or a xanthophyte and the identity of small spherical inclusions that have been frequently interpreted as autospores. It occurs in Upper Teesdale in pools that are that are small, relatively newly formed and mostly well-oxygenated. Also discussed is its relationship to Trochiscia, another coloniser of peatland pools. Photographic images are presented for the first time and comments made on its ecology in the context of blanket bog conservation projects and apparent rarity

Assessment of Spray Polyurethane Foam Worker Exposure to Organophosphate Flame Retardants Through Measures in Air, Hand Wipes, and Urine

Tris(1-chloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TCPP, also referenced as TCIPP), a flame retardant used in spray polyurethane foam insulation, increases cell toxicity and affects fetal development. Spray polyurethane foam workers have the potential to be exposed to TCPP during application. In this study, we determined exposure to TCPP and concentrations of the urinary biomarker bis(1-chloro-2-propyl) phosphate (BCPP) among 29 spray polyurethane foam workers over 2 work days. Work was conducted at residential or commercial facilities using both open-cell (low density) and closed-cell (high density) foam. Study participants provided two personal air samples (Day 1 and Day 2), two hand wipe samples (Pre-shift Day 2 and Post-shift Day 2), and two spot urine samples (Pre-shift Day 1 and Post-shift Day 2). Bulk samples of cured spray foam were also analyzed. Sprayers were found to have significantly higher TCPP geometric mean (GM) concentration in personal air samples (87.1 μg/m3), compared to helpers (30.2 μg/m3; p = 0.025). A statistically significant difference was observed between TCPP pre- and post-shift hand wipe GM concentrations (p = 0.004). Specifically, TCPP GM concentration in post-shift hand wipe samples of helpers (106,000 ng/sample) was significantly greater than pre-shift (27,300 ng/sample; p \u3c 0.001). The GM concentration of the urinary biomarker BCPP (23.8 μg/g creatinine) was notably higher than the adult male general population (0.159 μg/g creatinine, p \u3c 0.001). Urinary BCPP GM concentration increased significantly from Pre-shift Day 1 to Post-shift Day 2 for sprayers (p = 0.013) and helpers (p = 0.009). Among bulk samples, cured open-cell foam had a TCPP GM concentration of 9.23% by weight while closed-cell foam was 1.68%. Overall, post-shift BCPP urine concentrations were observed to be associated with TCPP air and hand wipe concentrations, as well as job position (sprayer vs. helper). Spray polyurethane foam workers should wear personal protective equipment including air-supplied respirators, coveralls, and gloves during application

Developing a prioritisation framework in an English Primary Care Trust.

BACKGROUND: In the English NHS, Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) are required to commission health services, to maximise the well-being of the population, subject to the available budget. There are numerous techniques employed to make decisions, some more rational and transparent than others. A weighted benefit score can be used to rank options but this does not take into account value for money from investments. METHODS: We developed a weighted benefit score framework for use in an English PCT which ranked options in order of 'cost-value' or 'cost per point of benefit'. Our method differs from existing techniques by explicitly combining cost and a composite weighted benefit score into the cost-value ratio. RESULTS: The technique proved readily workable, and was able to accommodate a wide variety of data and competing criteria. Participants felt able to assign scores to proposed services, and generate a ranked list, which provides a solid starting point for the PCT Board to discuss and make funding decisions. Limitations included potential for criteria to be neither exhaustive nor mutually exclusive and the lack of an interval property in the benefit score limiting the usefulness of a cost-value ratio. CONCLUSION: A technical approach to decision making is insufficient for making prioritisation decisions, however our technique provides a very valuable, structured and informed starting point for PCT decision making

Multivariate discrimination and the Higgs + W/Z search

A systematic method for optimizing multivariate discriminants is developed and applied to the important example of a light Higgs boson search at the Tevatron and the LHC. The Significance Improvement Characteristic (SIC), defined as the signal efficiency of a cut or multivariate discriminant divided by the square root of the background efficiency, is shown to be an extremely powerful visualization tool. SIC curves demonstrate numerical instabilities in the multivariate discriminants, show convergence as the number of variables is increased, and display the sensitivity to the optimal cut values. For our application, we concentrate on Higgs boson production in association with a W or Z boson with H -> bb and compare to the irreducible standard model background, Z/W + bb. We explore thousands of experimentally motivated, physically motivated, and unmotivated single variable discriminants. Along with the standard kinematic variables, a number of new ones, such as twist, are described which should have applicability to many processes. We find that some single variables, such as the pull angle, are weak discriminants, but when combined with others they provide important marginal improvement. We also find that multiple Higgs boson-candidate mass measures, such as from mild and aggressively trimmed jets, when combined may provide additional discriminating power. Comparing the significance improvement from our variables to those used in recent CDF and DZero searches, we find that a 10-20% improvement in significance against Z/W + bb is possible. Our analysis also suggests that the H + W/Z channel with H -> bb is also viable at the LHC, without requiring a hard cut on the W/Z transverse momentum.Comment: 41 pages, 5 tables, 29 figure

The use of biomedicine, complementary and alternative medicine, and ethnomedicine for the treatment of epilepsy among people of South Asian origin in the UK

Studies have shown that a significant proportion of people with epilepsy use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). CAM use is known to vary between different ethnic groups and cultural contexts; however, little attention has been devoted to inter-ethnic differences within the UK population. We studied the use of biomedicine, complementary and alternative medicine, and ethnomedicine in a sample of people with epilepsy of South Asian origin living in the north of England. Interviews were conducted with 30 people of South Asian origin and 16 carers drawn from a sampling frame of patients over 18 years old with epilepsy, compiled from epilepsy registers and hospital databases. All interviews were tape-recorded, translated if required and transcribed. A framework approach was adopted to analyse the data. All those interviewed were taking conventional anti-epileptic drugs. Most had also sought help from traditional South Asian practitioners, but only two people had tried conventional CAM. Decisions to consult a traditional healer were taken by families rather than by individuals with epilepsy. Those who made the decision to consult a traditional healer were usually older family members and their motivations and perceptions of safety and efficacy often differed from those of the recipients of the treatment. No-one had discussed the use of traditional therapies with their doctor. The patterns observed in the UK mirrored those reported among people with epilepsy in India and Pakistan. The health care-seeking behaviour of study participants, although mainly confined within the ethnomedicine sector, shared much in common with that of people who use global CAM. The appeal of traditional therapies lay in their religious and moral legitimacy within the South Asian community, especially to the older generation who were disproportionately influential in the determination of treatment choices. As a second generation made up of people of Pakistani origin born in the UK reach the age when they are the influential decision makers in their families, resort to traditional therapies may decline. People had long experience of navigating plural systems of health care and avoided potential conflict by maintaining strict separation between different sectors. Health care practitioners need to approach these issues with sensitivity and to regard traditional healers as potential allies, rather than competitors or quacks

Proximity: A Levinasian Approach to Justice for Animals

The increased use of terms associated with rights appears to have led, at the most, to only moderate changes with regard to the actual level of protection and the underlying ethical-legal status of animals. Whereas the rights discourse may have been a logical first step, there appears to be underlying issues that cannot be adequately addressed through this discourse

Demographics and Medication Use of Patients with Late-Onset Alzheimer's Disease in Hong Kong

BACKGROUND: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia in the elderly population. However, epidemiological studies on the demographics of AD in Hong Kong population are lacking. OBJECTIVE: We investigated the demographics, comorbidities, mortality rates, and medication use of patients with AD in Hong Kong to understand how the disease has been managed locally. METHODS: This was a collaborative study of The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and the Hospital Authority Data Collaboration Lab. We analyzed the demographic data, clinical records, diagnoses, and medication records of patients with AD under the care of the Hospital Authority between January 1, 2007 and December 31, 2017. RESULTS: We identified 23,467 patients diagnosed with AD. The median age at diagnosis was 84 years old, and 71% of patients were female. The most common comorbidity was hypertension (52.6%). 39.9% of patients received medications for dementia; of those, 68.4% had taken those medications for >  1 year. Compared to nonusers, long-term AD medication users had a significantly younger age of AD onset and were taking more lipid-regulating medication, diabetes medication, or antidepressants. Surprisingly, the use of antipsychotics in patients with AD was quite common; 50.7% of patients had received any type of antipsychotic during disease progression. CONCLUSION: This study provides detailed information on the demographics and medication use of patients with AD in Hong Kong. The data from this AD cohort will aid our future research aiming to identify potential AD risk factors and associations between AD and other diseases

Advancing Tests of Relativistic Gravity via Laser Ranging to Phobos

Phobos Laser Ranging (PLR) is a concept for a space mission designed to advance tests of relativistic gravity in the solar system. PLR's primary objective is to measure the curvature of space around the Sun, represented by the Eddington parameter $\gamma$, with an accuracy of two parts in $10^7$, thereby improving today's best result by two orders of magnitude. Other mission goals include measurements of the time-rate-of-change of the gravitational constant, $G$ and of the gravitational inverse square law at 1.5 AU distances--with up to two orders-of-magnitude improvement for each. The science parameters will be estimated using laser ranging measurements of the distance between an Earth station and an active laser transponder on Phobos capable of reaching mm-level range resolution. A transponder on Phobos sending 0.25 mJ, 10 ps pulses at 1 kHz, and receiving asynchronous 1 kHz pulses from earth via a 12 cm aperture will permit links that even at maximum range will exceed a photon per second. A total measurement precision of 50 ps demands a few hundred photons to average to 1 mm (3.3 ps) range precision. Existing satellite laser ranging (SLR) facilities--with appropriate augmentation--may be able to participate in PLR. Since Phobos' orbital period is about 8 hours, each observatory is guaranteed visibility of the Phobos instrument every Earth day. Given the current technology readiness level, PLR could be started in 2011 for launch in 2016 for 3 years of science operations. We discuss the PLR's science objectives, instrument, and mission design. We also present the details of science simulations performed to support the mission's primary objectives.Comment: 25 pages, 10 figures, 9 table