Bristol Deaf Memories: archives, nostalgia and the loss of community space in the deaf community in Bristol

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Taylor & Francis via the DOI in this record.The deaf community in the UK has undergone major changes in recent years, which has uprooted it from its traditional foundations, the deaf club and deaf residential school. This article examines the effect of the closure of the deaf club in Bristol, a city in the South West of England, which resulted in the loss of an important community place and spaces for deaf people in the city. We discuss, with a strong focus on methodology, a community event celebrating Bristol’s deaf heritage organised by the research team which utilised archive materials, including archived actuality footage, this article draws on interview data elicited from participants in that event to explore the meanings connected to space and place in both past and present by the deaf community in Bristol. Concepts of the rhizome and the smooth and striated spaces of Deleuze and Guattari were found to be useful models with which to engage with the contemporary struggles of the deaf community for community recognition and organisation. We also suggest an online mapping application which enables the practice of rhizomatic cartography could be a way forward in preserving the deaf heritage and history of the city.This research was funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, grant number AH/M009203/

Cold, green and clean: reduction of parasitic losses in zero emission cryogenic expanders

Dearman were a start up company manufacturing engines utilising a waste product, liquid nitrogen, to extract clean and cold power. The test case of the Dearman engine is a truck refrigeration unit (TRU), used on refrigerated delivery lorries; accounting for a large proportion of the total particulate emissions in refrigerated transport. The Dearman Engine reduces the total emissions from these refrigerated lorries however there is room for improvement and refinement to advance the technology closer to the maximum potential efficiency of the engine. This will reduce emissions from the system and the impact of refrigerated transportation on the environment. This thesis is focused on the tribology of the engine, reducing the parasitic losses through a three pronged approach: new materials, new lubricants and new designs. The Dearman Engine has a low power output compared to an internal combustion engine (ICE) and as such parasitic losses have the potential to absorb a significant amount of the power generated. The cylinder liner — piston seal interaction was identified as the key contributor to friction in the engine. A material replacement investigation of the cylinder liner was undertaken through tribological specimen testing. A poly-tetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) cylinder, representative of the piston seal, was reciprocated against a number of polymer matrix composites (PMCs). The investigation compared the PMC to the current material used in the Dearman Engine: honed aluminium. The benchmark coefficient of friction at 12 C under a contact pressure and reciprocating frequency representative of the Dearman Engine was 0.14. After investigation it was determined that unhoned poly-oxymethylene (POM) was the most beneficial polymer to implement in this area with a coefficient of friction of 0.08 at 12 C. Unhoned POM also outperformed the benchmark in terms of settling time and percentage overshoot: summary statistics that were linked to the wear of the PTFE cylinder. The potential of a laminated polymer as an alternative to the current piston seal, a composite, was also investigated: providing a saving in manufacturing costs and required energy of manufacture. Samples were tested under contact pressures representative of the pressures in the Dearman Engine. There was no significant difference between the coefficient of friction and wear of a PTFE-PEEK composite and a PTFE-PEEK laminate at the same ratio of PTFE:PEEK (20%). In an attempt to negate the need for an oil pump two fluids were examined as lubricants and potential heat exchange fluids (HEFs); one based on pectin and the other on bovine serum albumin (BSA). HEF is the working fluid that ensures efficient expansion of N2 within the engine. It was shown that both fluids formed lubricating films and had the potential to be successful industrially viable lubricants. Pectin solutions were more sensitive to the concentration, where as BSA demonstrated less variation in the coefficient of friction between the two concentrations. At high loads BSA produced the lowest coefficient of friction; although at both loads tested 5mg/ml pectin was capable of producing low coefficients of friction and as such in a complex system may be a better solution. The study identified that these lubricants have the potential to be a replacement for hydrocarbon based lubricants under the conditions tested. Data analysis also led to improvements in the processing and potential insights inferred from tribological data: utilising a higher sample rate to investigate the effects of viscoelastic properties of polymers and lubricants on friction. Traditionally data is collected at a lower sample rate; this is a brute force approach to tribology and increasing this sample rate gives insights far exceeding the information present in traditional data analysis. The key feature that is missed in reciprocating tests is the area at the extremes of the stroke where a potential lubricant layer is broken down and there is stick-slip behavior resulting from asperity contact and a potential increased wear rate. Combining a biomimetic lubricant/heat exchange fluid with a POM cylinder liner and a laminated PTFE/POM piston seal has the potential to reduce the parasitic losses and overall weight of the TRU. New analytical techniques will assist in future testing of viscoelastic materials and lubricants. This thesis has provided the initial steps in developing the Dearman Engine from a tribological perspective: potentially advancing the technology’s industrial readiness and ensuring that the environmental ethos of the company is maintained

Enhanced smoking cessation support for newly abstinent smokers discharged from hospital (The Hospital to Home trial): A randomised controlled trial

Background and aimsThe United Kingdom's National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance (NICE PH48) recommends that pharmacotherapy combined with behavioural support be provided for all smokers admitted to hospital; however, relapse to smoking after discharge remains common. This study aimed to assess the effect of adding home support for newly?abstinent smokers to conventional NICE?recommended support in smokers discharged from hospital.Designindividually?randomised parallel group trial.SettingOne UK acute hospital.Participants404 smokers aged >18 admitted to acute medical wards between June 2016 and July 2017 were randomised in equal numbers to each treatment group.Interventions and comparatorsThe intervention provided 12 weeks of at?home cessation support which included help in maintaining a smoke?free home, help in accessing and using medication, further behavioural support and personalised feedback on home air quality. The comparator was NICE PH48 care as usual.MeasuresThe primary outcome was self?reported continuous abstinence from smoking validated by an exhaled carbon monoxide level ?6ppm four?weeks after discharge from hospital.FindingsIn an intention?to?treat analysis at the four?week primary endpoint, 38 participants (18.8%) in the usual care group and 43 (21.3%) in the intervention group reported continuous abstinence from smoking (odds ratio 1.17, 95% confidence interval 0.72 to 1.90, Bayes factor 0.33). There were no significant differences in any secondary outcomes, including self?reported cessation at 3 months, having a smoke?free home, or number of cigarettes smoked per day in those who did not quit.ConclusionsProvision of a home visit and continued support to prevent relapse to smoking after hospital discharge did not appear to increase subsequent abstinence rate above usual care in accordance with UK guidance from the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence

First occurrence of Xanthomonas campestris pv. raphanion wallflower (Erysimum cheiri) in the United Kingdom

In a study of diseases caused by Xanthomonas campestris on UK nursery-grown wallflowers (Erysimum cheiri), one isolate (P764) obtained in 1990 from Sussex differed from the others. The affected plants (cv. Bedder Mixed), showed distorted growth with chlorotic and necrotic spots, but no sectored V-shaped wilting, the most common symptom associated with xanthomonads in wallflowers. Other X. campestris isolates (including P763), were obtained from wallflowers with typical wilting. Infected plant material was comminuted in sterile 0.1% peptone solution and loopfuls streaked onto yeast dextrose chalk agar and nutrient dextrose agar (Lelliott & Stead, 1987). Plates were incubated for up to 72 hours at 28°C. Xanthomonas-like colonies were purified by re-streaking and isolates were maintained at -80°C (Protect System, UK)

Improving bycatch mitigation measures for marine megafauna in Zanzibar, Tanzania

This study was conducted to explore the governance processes and socio-economic factors relevant to the potential implementation of bycatch mitigation for various vulnerable marine megafauna (rays, sharks, marine mammals and turtles) in Zanzibar, Tanzania. Questionnaire-based interviews were conducted between February and April 2017 with fishers (n= 240) at eight landing sites. One focus group discussion was held in each site and eleven key informant interviews were carried out. The study showed that current measures to manage bycatch rates are not explicit; no rules govern rays and sharks bycatch; and rules regarding marine mammal and sea turtle bycatch are poorly enforced. Binary logistic regression was used to determine the effect of five selected socio-economic factors (education, age, proportional fishing income, fishing experience, and the number of adults who bring income into the household) on the willingness of fishers to participate in potential future bycatch mitigation measures for marine megafauna. The results indicate that only one factor (the number of adults who bring income into the household) had any significant effect (p=0.016). These findings could benefit the future governance and management of marine megafauna in Zanzibar through a better understanding of what mitigation measures are more likely to be supported

Application of unmanned aerial vehicle data and discrete fracture network models for improved rockfall simulations

In this research, we present a new approach to define the distribution of block volumes during rockfall simulations. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are utilized to generate high-accuracy 3D models of the inaccessible SW flank of the Mount Rava (Italy), to provide improved definition of data gathered from conventional geomechanical surveys and to also denote important changes in the fracture intensity. These changes are likely related to the variation of the bedding thickness and to the presence of fracture corridors in fault damage zones in some areas of the slope. The dataset obtained integrating UAV and conventional surveys is then utilized to create and validate two accurate 3D discrete fracture network models, representative of high and low fracture intensity areas, respectively. From these, the ranges of block volumes characterizing the in situ rock mass are extracted, providing important input for rockfall simulations. Initially, rockfall simulations were performed assuming a uniform block volume variation for each release cell. However, subsequent simulations used a more realistic nonuniform distribution of block volumes, based on the relative block volume frequency extracted from discrete fracture network (DFN) models. The results of the simulations were validated against recent rockfall events and show that it is possible to integrate into rockfall simulations a more realistic relative frequency distribution of block volumes using the results of DFN analyse

International experience of public infrastructure delivery in support of housing growth

This paper compares planning and funding arrangements for public infrastructure delivery in support of new housing development in the UK, Australia, Germany, the Netherlands, Canada, the US, and Hong Kong/Mainland China. It examines the roles and responsibilities of different levels of government, the extraction of financial contributions from the development process (mainly funded through increases in land value), and the level of involvement of private and public actors in infrastructure delivery and land value capture (LVC). Three linked questions provide a basis for comparison of the cases: first, what arrangements are in place, in terms of planning hierarchy and responsibility, for coordinating infrastructure delivery (and how do these relate to funding arrangements); second, how are local contributions extracted from the development process or through the acquisition and sale of land; and lastly, what inferences can be drawn regarding the relative power of public and private actors in this process and to what extent is public interest prioritized/served through prevailing approaches to value extraction. The paper contributes international experience to debates on optimizing planning approaches for infrastructure delivery while maximizing public benefit from land value

Mouth rinsing with a sweet solution increases energy expenditure and decreases appetite during 60 minutes of self-regulated walking exercise

Carbohydrate mouth rinsing can improve endurance exercise performance and is most ergogenic when exercise is completed in the fasted state. This strategy may also be beneficial to increase exercise capacity and the energy deficit achieved during moderate intensity exercise relevant to weight control when performed after an overnight fast. Eighteen healthy men (mean(SD); age 23(4)years, body mass index 23.1(2.4)kg.m-2 ) completed a familiarisation trial and three experimental trials. After an overnight fast, participants performed 60-minutes of treadmill walking at a speed that equated to a rating of perceived exertion of 13 (“fairly hard”). Participants manually adjusted the treadmill speed to maintain this exertion. Mouth rinses for the experimental trials contained either a 6.4% maltodextrin solution with sweetener (CHO), a taste-matched placebo (PLA) or water (WAT). Appetite ratings were collected using visual analogue scales and exercise energy expenditure and substrate oxidation were calculated from online gas analysis. Increased walking distance during CHO and PLA induced greater energy expenditure compared with WAT (mean difference (90% CI); 79(60)kJ; P=0.035; d=0.24 and 90(63)kJ; P=0.024; d=0.27, respectively). Appetite area under the curve was lower in CHO and PLA than WAT (8(6)mm; P=0.042; d=0.43 and 6(8)mm; P=0.201; d=0.32, respectively). Carbohydrate oxidation was higher in CHO than PLA and WAT (7.3(6.7)g; P=0.078; d=0.47 and 10.1(6.5)g; P=0.015; d=0.81, respectively). This study provides novel evidence that mouth rinsing with a sweetened solution may promote a greater energy deficit during moderate exertion walking exercise by increasing energy expenditure and decreasing appetite. A placebo effect may have contributed to these benefits