Silica final lenses under HiPER laser fusion reactor operation conditions

We have studied the thermo-mechanical response and atomistic degradation of final lenses in HiPER project. Final silica lenses are squares of 75 × 75 cm2 with a thickness of 5 cm. There are two scenarios where lenses are located at 8 m from the centre: •HiPER 4a, bunches of 100 shots (maximum 5 DT shots <48 MJ at ≈0.1 Hz). No blanket in chamber geometry. •HiPER 4b, continuous mode with shots ≈50 MJ at 10 Hz to generate 0.5 GW. Liquid metal blanket in chamber design

Effect of stress and attention on startle response and prepulse inhibition

The startle reflex magnitude can be modulated when a weak stimulus is presented before the onset of the startle stimulus, a phenomenon termed prepulse inhibition (PPI). Previous research has demonstrated that emotional processes can modulate PPI and startle intensity, but the available evidence is inconclusive. In order to obtain additional evidence in this domain, we conducted two experiments intended to analyze the effect of induced stress and attentional load on PPI and startle magnitude. Specifically, in Experiment 1 we used a between subject strategy to evaluate the effect on startle response and PPI magnitude of performing a difficult task intended to induce stress in the participants, as compared to a group exposed to a control task. In Experiment 2 we evaluated the effect of diverting attention from the acoustic stimulus on startle and PPI intensity. The results seem to indicate that induced stress can reduce PPI, and that startle reflex intensity is reduced when attention is directed away from the auditory stimulus that induces the reflex.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad PSI2012-32077Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad PSI2015-64965-P/MINECO-FEDE

An overview on armor research for the laser fusion project HiPER

During the current preparatory phase of the European laser fusion project HiPER, an intensive effort has being placed to identify an armour material able to protect the internal walls of the chamber against the high thermal loads and high fluxes of x-rays and ions produced during the fusion explosions. This poster addresses the different threats and limitations of a poly-crystalline Tungsten armour. The analysis is carried out under the conditions of an experimental chamber hypothetically constructed to demonstrate laser fusion in a repetitive mode, subjected to a few thousand 48MJ shock ignition shots during its entire lifetime. If compared to the literature, an extrapolation of the thermomechanical and atomistic effects obtained from the simulations of the experimental chamber to the conditions of a Demo reactor (working 24/7 at hundreds of MW) or a future power plant (producing GW) suggests that “standard” tungsten will not be a suitable armour. Thus, new materials based on nano-structured W and C are being investigated as possible candidates. The research programme launched by the HiPER material team is introduced

Characterization and proposals for the improvement of goat production systems of the Peruvian coast

Perú tiene un importante sector caprino con rebaños de aptitud cárnica o mixta. Sin embargo, en los valles de la costa central hay una mayor tendencia a la orientación lechera, alimentando a los animales en base a rastrojos agrícolas. El objetivo de este estudio fue caracterizar las explotaciones de esta zona, para lo cual se entrevistaron 60 ganaderos y se analizaron 39 variables. Se realizó un análisis multivariante seguido de un ANOVA entre los cuatro grupos resultantes del mismo; obteniéndose dos dimensiones que explican el 69.9 % de la varianza. Ocho variables mostraron diferencias significativas: (i) educación del ganadero, los niveles primario y secundario predominaron respectivamente en los Grupos 2 y 3, P<0.05; (ii) superficie de explotación, menos de 0.50 ha a excepción del Grupo 1, P<0.05; (iii) modo de propiedad de la tierra, la propiedad privada fue menor en el Grupo 1, P<0.01; (iv) importancia de las cabras, la producción caprina es la principal actividad del ganadero en los Grupos 3 y 4, P<0.001; (v) número de caprinos, 97 y 80 respectivamente en los Grupos 1 y 4 y menos en el resto; P<0.001); (vii) número de bovinos, 18 y 16 respectivamente en los Grupos 1 y 2, y menos en el resto, P<0.001; y (viii) suministro de alimentos en la granja, no existiendo éste en los Grupos 1 y 4, P<0.01. Para tener continuidad y mejora, estos sistemas de producción caprina deberían reorganizarse de forma global, incrementar el tamaño de las explotaciones y tratar de comercializar productos diferenciados.Peru has an important goat sector, based mainly on mixed or meat purpose herds. Nevertheless, in Peruvian central coast valleys, goats are more oriented to milk purpose, being the animal feeding based on graze crop stubbles. The objective of this study was to characterize farms of this area. Sixty (60) farmers were interviewed and 39 variables were used in the study. A multivariate analysis followed by an ANOVA among the four obtained clusters was conducted. Two dimensions were obtained explaining 69.9 % of variance. Eight variables showed statistical differences: (i) farmer’s education level, primary and secondary level predominate respectively in Clusters 3 and 2, P<0.05); (ii) farm surface area, less than 0.50 ha except in Cluster 1, P<0.05; (iii) type of land ownership, private was lesser in Cluster 1, P<0.01; (iv) importance of goats, goat production was the main farmer activity in Clusters 3 and 4, P<0.001; (v) number of goats, 97 y 80 respectively in Clusters 1 and 4 and less in the other clusters; P<0.001); (vii) number of bovines, 18 and 16 respectively in Clusters 1 and 2 and less in the other clusters, P<0.001; and (viii) feeding supply in the trough, farmers did not supplied feed in Clusters 1 and 4, P<0.01. These production systems should be improved globally for their continuity. Likewise, the holding size increasing would be appropriate and the trading of singular products should be driving

Medical students’ perceptions towards learning communication skills: a qualitative study following the 2-year training programme.

Objective: This study aimed to gain an understanding of the perceptions of 4th-year medical students about a training course in communication skills with 'experiential learning' characteristics, completed over the past two years.Methods: Twenty 4th-year medical students were invited to participate in a qualitative study with focus groups. These students were selected randomly, stratifying by gender, from all 4th-year medical students (106) at the Francisco de Vitoria University (Madrid). The students had just completed their communication skills training taught in small groups, with simulated patient interviews and feedback. The focusgroup facilitator used an open-ended discussion guide to explore the students' perceptions. Thematic analysis was used to identify salient themes from these discussions. Results: Sixteen students participated in two focus groups. The discussions revealed two contrasting perceptions: while this learning is considered useful, it nevertheless brings about a great deal of stress, especially regarding student exposure to peers in small-group sessions when interviewing standardised patients, and summative assessment. This generates a range of negative feelings in students that could affect perspective and attitude towards the importance of doctor-patient relationships. Conclusions: Experiential learning is effective in improving students' communication skills. However, these results suggest that use of such strategies requires a strong focus on "student-centred" teaching approaches, in order to minimise some sensitive topics that may arise during the learning. Further research is needed to refine these strategies depending on the teaching situation and to identify different ways of implementing these experiential methods.post-print206 K

Medical students’ attitudes toward communication skills learning: comparison between two groups with and without training.

Objective: The value students give to communication skills (CS), acquiring them, or other related matters can influence the effectiveness of educational programs. In this study, we explored first and fourth year medical students’ attitudes toward CS and their learning, assessing the possible influence they have on programmed experiential training in a medical school. Subjects and methods: Two hundred and twenty first and fourth year medical students completed the Communication Skills Attitudes Scale, analyzing the positive and negative, and affective and cognitive attitude subscales toward learning. Results: Fourth year students trained in CS showed less positive attitudes toward CS than first year untrained students. Cognitive and affective attitudes displayed different patterns in both groups; while affective attitudes decreased in fourth year students, cognitive attitudes did not vary significantly between groups. Accumulated learning experiences seem to be more influential than sex. Conclusion: The findings suggest that students’ attitudes toward CS could decline as a result of CS training. Nevertheless, students’ attitudes at the cognitive and fundamental level stay fairly unchanged. Learning CS with experiential methods seems to be challenging for students at a personal level; so, educators should personalize these methods as much as possible. However, further studies using longitudinal research designs should be performed for exploring students’ attitudes changes over time.post-print182 K

Sustainability analysis of small ruminant farms involved in the conservation of natural resources

pendiente autorización de la revistaThe Environment Department of the Government of Andalusia (Spain) has recently assumed the responsibility of integrating extensive livestock grazing as a tool for fire prevention. The present study aims to analyse the sustainability of 60 farms (mainly small ruminant farms) belonging to the Andalusian Network of Grazed Fuel breaks. Farms are located mainly in Natural Areas of Eastern Andalusia. 9291 goats, 24491 ewes and 170 cows grazed in 260 km of fuel breaks. 27 farms have only sheep (mainly meat purpose), 18 only goats (mainly dairy purpose), 10 goat and sheep, 3 small ruminants and suckling cows and 2 small ruminants, suckling cows and Iberian pigs; only 4 goat farms produce cheese. Meat and milk production has a marked seasonal variation. The feed supplied in the manger is relatively high, especially in goat herds. Hard work, small farm profitability and lack of assurance of farm continuity are the most important aspects that negatively affect the sustainability of these farms. For improving sustainability, farmers are to be able to exploit strengths, absorb shocks, adjust following a disturbance and transform their farm to take advantage of new opportunities.Le Département de l’Environnement du Gouvernement de l'Andalousie (Espagne) a récemment pris la responsabilité d’intégrer le pâturage extensif dans la prévention des incendies. La présente étude analyse la viabilité de 60 exploitations (surtout des petites exploitations de ruminants) qui appartiennent au Réseau Andalou des Exploitations Collaboratrices au Pâturage des Coupe-feux. Les fermes sont situées principalement dans les Parcs Naturels de l'Est de l'Andalousie. 9291 chèvres, 24491 brebis et 170 vaches sont en pâturage dans 260 km de coupe-feux. 27 exploitations ont seulement des ovins (surtout d’aptitude viande), 18 ont seulement des caprins (surtout d’aptitude laitière), 10 ont des ovins et caprins, 3 ont des petits ruminants et des bovins et 2 ont des petits ruminants, des bovins et des porcins de la race Ibérique ; il n’y a que 4 fermes qui fabriquent du fromage. La production de viande et de lait sont très saisonnières. Les apports d'aliments à l’auge sont relativement élevés, en particulier dans le cas des chèvres. Les aspects plus négativement influents sur la durabilité des exploitations sont: la pénibilité du travail, la faible rentabilité des petites exploitations et le manque d'assurance de la continuité des exploitations. Pour améliorer la durabilité des ces exploitations, les éleveurs devraient valoriser les points forts des systèmes d’exploitation, résister aux difficultés, faire des ajustements après une perturbation du système et faire des changements dans les exploitations afin de profiter des opportunités

Proposal of environmental indicators of sustainability for ruminant pastoral production system

Este artículo es la continuación de un estudio previo presentado por los autores en el Seminario FAO-CIEHAM (Organización para la Agricultura y la Alimentación- Centro Internacional de Altos Estudios Agronómicos Mediterráneos) celebrado en Sevilla, España, en 2005, en el cual se realizó un análisis preliminar acerca del uso de los indicadores de la FAO-CIEHAM para evaluar la sustentabilidad de granjas con pequeños rumiantes. El artículo que se presenta ofrece una lista de 48 indicadores ambientales genéricos, adaptada a las granjas con pequeños rumiantes con relación a ocho aspectos: prácticas agrícolas, suelo, agua, paisaje, energía, residuos, bienestar animal y biodiversidad. Se necesita trabajo adicional para completar y perfeccionar esta lista, la cual se ha obtenido a partir de la consulta a expertos y de una revisión de metodologías existentes.This paper is the continuation of a previous study presented by the authors in the FAO-CIEHAM (Food and Agriculture OrganizationInternational Center for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies) seminar in Seville in 2005, in which, a preliminary analysis was made of the use of FAO-CIHEAM indicators to evaluate sustainability of small ruminant farms. The paper presented provides a list of 48 generic environmental indicators adapted to small ruminant farms with respect to eight aspects: agricultural practices, soil, water, landscape, energy, residues, animal welfare, and biodiversity. Further work is necessary to complete and perfect this list which has been obtained from a review of methodologi

The Role of the Spatial and Temporal Radiation Deposition in Inertial Fusion Chambers: The case of HiPER

The first wall armour for the reactor chamber of HiPER will have to face short energy pulses of 5 to 20 MJ mostly in the form of x-rays and charged particles at a repetition rate of 5–10 Hz. Armour material and chamber dimensions have to be chosen to avoid/minimize damage to the chamber, ensuring the proper functioning of the facility during its planned lifetime. The maximum energy fluence that the armour can withstand without risk of failure, is determined by temporal and spatial deposition of the radiation energy inside the material. In this paper, simulations on the thermal effect of the radiation–armour interaction are carried out with an increasing definition of the temporal and spatial deposition of energy to prove their influence on the final results. These calculations will lead us to present the first values of the thermo-mechanical behaviour of the tungsten armour designed for the HiPER project under a shock ignition target of 48 MJ. The results will show that only the crossing of the plasticity limit in the first few micrometres might be a threat after thousands of shots for the survivability of the armour