Preventing opioid overdoses in Europe:a critical assessment of known risk factors and preventative measures

This report is the outcome of a project into opioid overdoses. The remit was to focus on finding practical methods of overdose prevention. In order to fulfil this remit, a critical review of existing knowledge on overdose prevention was conducted. The report adds value to existing information by developing a methodology to classify and analyse risk and protective factors stratified by those involved (drug users, observers and organisations). The report then assesses the extent to which risk and protective factors can be potentially modified at different levels, e.g. individual, treatment setting, organisational and strategic. The report therefore has the potential to be updated as new information emerges

"Wonderful", "Hot", "Good" Priests: Clergy on Contemporary British TV and the New Visibility of Religion Thesis

This article examines the “new visibility of religion” thesis through a case study of recent depictions of priests and ministers in British television drama and comedy. It focuses on four award-winning shows produced between 2009-2019 with clergy as central characters: Broadchurch, Broken, Fleabag and Rev. Clergy on these shows are depicted positively, in ways that contrast with portrayals in the 1990s and earlier 2000s. The shows demonstrate an active sympathy for, and engagement with, theological themes, and awareness of the important social role that clergy play in inner-city parishes. While some elements of these depictions support the idea of a “new visibility”, at the same time they reiterate narratives of continuing religious decline in Britain. Rather than unproblematically celebrate faith, the shows use religion to critique neoliberal welfare policy and sacralise notions of community. This “new visibility” is also shown to contribute to the continued invisibility of some religious viewpoints in the media. This article concludes that despite these limitations, recent portrayals of clergy offer new opportunities for religious debate and conversation, particularly within media and fan commentary

Alcohol use and alcohol-use disorders among older adults in India: a literature review.

OBJECTIVES: With changing attitudes to alcohol and an increasing life span in India, the prevalence of alcohol use and misuse in successive cohorts of older people is likely to increase. In this paper, we attempt to review the most recent evidence covering alcohol use and alcohol-use disorders in the Indian elderly. METHODS: PubMed, PsycINFO and Indmed databases were searched using relevant keywords. Papers meeting eligibility criteria were selected through a sequential process of screening title, abstract and full text. Data were extracted into Excel sheets. RESULTS: There was a dearth of pan-national studies. There were several methodological issues with many studies especially related to measurement. A substantial proportion of individuals above the age of 50 years are current consumers of alcohol and the prevalence is generally higher in urban compared to rural areas. Older women are generally likely to be alcohol abstainers. The general trend appears to be a reduction in current drinking among successive age cohorts over the age of 50. Alcohol consumption in the older adults is associated with educational status, health status, chronic morbidity, employment status, socioeconomic status, auditory/locomotor impairment and asthma. CONCLUSION: Alcohol use and misuse is a problem among the Indian older adults. With socio-demographic changes that will further increase longevity, this problem is likely to increase and policy-makers need to plan for it. Future research needs to improve validity and reliability in study methodology, as well as add to the current evidence base

Learning together: Foucault, Sennett and the crisis of the co-operative character

In this article, we argue that it is necessary to think of co-operation not simply as a skill, but as a virtue, and consequently that what distinguishes a genuine co-operative pedagogy is that it is about forming habits that are virtues. We begin by examining Richard Sennett's account of co-operation in Together. We find in Sennett's assessment of the predicament afflicting co-operation in contemporary capitalist economies an invitation to reflect on the formation of the co-operative character. In the subsequent two parts of the article we look critically at the dominant value of post-Enlightenment education — the aspiration to create autonomous learners, using the work of Michel Foucault on education. Foucault offers a critique of the manner in which the En lightenment values of transparency, instrumentalism and autonomy create students that are isolated rather than co-operators. However, while isolating the problem of autonomy, Foucault does not provide any overt alternative reframing of the pedagogical experience. Thus, we attempt to reposition the question of autonomy in line with an argument for the benefits of co-operative character: autonomy emerges from co-operation not from isolation. Finally, we offer a brief genealogy of Robert Owen’s early views about educational reform, with the aim of highlighting the ambiguity of his proposals and the legacy they left. We conclude by arguing that it is critical to maintain that co- operation is a phronetic virtue because co-operation goes all the way down through our being: being a co-operator is not a skill but who we are

A coupled discrete adjoint method for optimal design with dynamic non-linear fluid structure interactions

Incorporating high-fidelity analysis methods in multidisciplinary design optimization necessitates efficient sensitivity evaluation, which is particularly important for time-accurate problems. This thesis presents a new discrete adjoint formulation suitable for fully coupled, non-linear, dynamic FSI problems. The solution includes time-dependent adjoint variables that arise from grid motion and chosen time integration methods for both the fluid and structural domains. Implemented as a generic multizone discrete adjoint solver for time-accurate analysis in the open-source multiphysics solver SU2, this provides a flexible framework for a wide range of applications. Design optimization of aerodynamic structures need accurate characterization of the coupled fluid-structure interactions (FSI). Incorporating high-fidelity analysis methods in the multidisciplinary design optimization (MDO) necessitates efficient sensitivity evaluation, which is particularly important for time-accurate problems. Adjoint methods are well established for sensitivity analysis when large number of design variables are needed. The use of discrete adjoint method through algorithmic differentiation enables the evaluation of sensitivities using an approximation of the Jacobian of the coupled problem, thus enabling this approach to be applied for multidisciplinary analysis. This thesis presents a new discrete adjoint formulation suitable for fully coupled, non-linear, dynamic FSI problems. A partitioned approach is considered with finite volume for the fluid and finite elements for the solid domains. The solution includes the time-dependent adjoint variables that arise from the grid motion and chosen time integration methods for both the fluid and structural domains. Implemented as a generic multizone discrete adjoint solver for timeaccurate analysis in the open-source multiphysics solver SU2, this provides a flexible framework for a wide range of applications. The partitioned FSI solver approach has been leveraged to extend the dynamic FSI capabilities to low speed flows through the introduction of a densitybased unsteady incompressible flow solver. The developed methodology and implementation are demonstrated using a range of numerical test cases. Optimal design for steady, coupled FSI problems are firstly presented before moving to the building blocks of dynamic coupled problems using single domain analysis, for both structural and fluid domains in turn. The new unsteady incompressible fluid solver, for both the primal and adjoint analysis, are verified against a range of well-known benchmark test cases, including problems with grid motion. Finally, applications of coupled dynamic problems are presented to verify both the unsteady incompressible solver for FSI as well as the successful verification of the discrete adjoint sensitivities for the transient response of a transonic compliant airfoil for a variety of both aerodynamic and structural objective functions.Open Acces

Development of parallel coordinates using D3 for hybrid reality environments : visualising acute lymphoblastic leukaemia data

University of Technology Sydney. Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology.Visualisation is the process of creating a visual representation of data. Visualisation is a tool that assists the analysis of data, the finding of patterns and meaning, the exploration of relationships and the development of hypotheses. Increasing amounts of medical data are being captured systematically as part of routine clinical care. In addition, medical research is identifying new biomarkers of disease diagnosis, prognosis and response to treatment such as gene expression profiles. Visualisation of biomedical data can assist in finding patterns in a particular disease to optimise treatment and prognosis. This is important, for example, for cancer patients, in which the opportunity of personalised treatment can make a large difference in the probability of a cure or remission. The primary objective of this research is to develop code to extend the 2D visualisation functionality of a newly built Data Arena (a CAVE-like Hybrid Reality Environment) by enabling a parallel co-ordinates data visualisation tool. This data visualisation tool will be used to evaluate multivariate high dimensional biomedical data of children with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, with the aim of developing better predictive risk stratification models to guide therapeutic decisions, which in turn, may reduce comorbidity and improve survival. Visualisation is an established exploratory tool for use with multivariate high dimensional data. It could be used in computer generated virtual environments. Virtual environments are three-dimensional computer generated environments that simulate sensory information. A recent technology is Hybrid Reality Environments (HREs) which combine the immersion of CAVE with the high resolution of large ultra-resolution displays. HREs are promising for the analysis of complex data. The University of Technology Sydney has built a CAVE-like HRE called the Data Arena. There are many visualisation libraries that could be integrated into the Data Arena for data visualisation tools. D3, a JavaScript library, has several components which improve interoperability, documentation, expressiveness, compatibility, and performance. D3 can also create Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) images, which is useful when performing interactions of the images and rendering. Of the many multivariate data visualisations tools that could be used to explore the relationships within the acute lymphoblastic leukaemia data using D3 in the Data Arena, parallel coordinates has been shown to be useful because of its ability to find patterns and exceptions. There are two aims for this thesis. The first aim is to demonstrate that parallel coordinates visualisation of a paediatric acute lymphoblastic leukaemia dataset can be implemented in the Data Arena. A secondary, minor aim is to be able to implement other 2D multidimensional visualisations in the Data Arena. Through iterative development and evaluation two potential solutions emerged. The first solution is to use the WebView Omegalib module and use it to view a webpage containing a D3 parallel coordinates visualisation. Omegalib is the application framework used in the Data Arena. This solution has the benefit of having easy interaction, but is heavily dependent on the progress of the module for increase in quality. The second proposed solution is a work in progress proof of concept. It uses an XML parser to parse an SVG created using the D3 library that is first extracted by the user for a webpage using D3. By analysing the parsed elements, the elements are translated into an Omegalib Cyclops module objects. An evaluation of these two solutions demonstrates that the first aim of the thesis is successful, however the second aim is not fulfilled. The parallel coordinates visualisations of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia data perform well in the Data Arena passing all test cases. The WebView solution succeeds in adapting some other types of 2D visualisations from external sources, but fails to visualise others. Additionally, as the SVG Parser solution is in the proof of concept stage there is still development needed to make it truly adaptable, but the potential is there. Overall, the thesis benefited the acute lymphoblastic leukaemia project by demonstrating that acute lymphoblastic leukaemia data can be visualised using parallel coordinates in the Data Arena with high quality and interactivity. Additionally, it assisted Data Arena developers because the process of using Omegalib and communicating with the developers gave feedback and identified some difficulties with Omegalib

The Space of Drawing

In this essay we engage with Maurice Merleau-Ponty’s claim as it is articulated in his famous last work, ‘Eye and Mind’, that Descartes’ account of space derived from the Renaissance art of perspective. We argue that not only is this account of space an essential element of Cartesian metaphysics, but that it plays a key role in modern philosophy and modern science. In part our aim is to underscore Merleau-Ponty’s recognition of the part that art plays in the genesis of the modern conception of space. However, we also argue that by way of this recognition, Merleau-Ponty seeks to release us from the limitations of this conception of space and the view of the human subject it entails, and return us to the world upon which the acts of drawing and painting draw, namely the ambiguous world of perception replete with creative potential